Well, if you mean that then the only thing you need to do is ask Jesus to forgive you. As simple as that. What does the Bible say whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. What else does it say? If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead you will be saved. It's simple enough for a child understand. You ask God to forgive you and save you that's all you need. You're going to have to just take Yahweh at his word..
My friend do as Jesus says, repent, and believe in the virgin birth, death, resurrection, and the sending of the holy spirit to dwell in all Christian's, then go and sin no more.
Repent your sins means .. change your mind from thinking you can correct yourself or you trying to fit in God's standard by obeying laws or your work to be righteous .Repent doesn't mean to change your daily activities , it could be you lie , hurting someone ,lust , theft etc .. God never condenmed anyone ... Jesus didn't condemned Peter for lying rather blessed him , God didn't condemned Noah for drunkardness , . God didn't condemned DAVID for murdering , .. God will not condenmed these activities or so you called it sin ..God comdemned Spiritual adultery , idolators, killing and stealing God's words and his truth , abandoning God for other gods or for yourself ...it's all about Spiritual sins ... Your flesh is sinful in nature.. and hence God didn't condenmed your Spiritual body neither judged your physical body because Jesus had redempt alll with his blood .. You are called perfect though you are not. All his grace and love for mankind , but if you think you will correct your life by your good works . Then you have defile and sins against God . You defile his works , love and free grace for all are his works , not yours ... All credit and praises to God ,.
Abraham Lincoln :" I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom, and that of all about me seemed insufficient for the day."
Whether he changes his mind or not this in itself clearly shows us that he is still omniscient and omnipotent (because he knows every outcome, and he has full control over every outcome) . And he always finds a way around sinful man's shortcomings. Not that it catches him off guard because it doesn't, but more like he is saying "I'm the Developer of this Creation and will add and subtract anything I decide". After all he is God, and we really have no right arguing against his grand plan Concerning The World nor are we born to know everything. And there is the beauty, even if we don't know everything, we can be sure that We have a God who does.
From time to time the same thing happens with my children. It appears to them I've changed my mind when in fact it was just part of the plan or lesson all along.
@@JonathanGrandt No, I think he's right. Especially if you're trying to get them to tidy up before you reward them with something. You tell them, no, because their room is still dirty, then they go and tidy it up, then you go back and see that they have tidied it up, and then you tell them yes. I don't know if it's a good example, but that's the type of idea Clay is getting at, and I think it's a good explanation, especially with God and Moses.
Thank you for this very precise clarification, very deep but clear for a mind that can get confused, but also very passionate about showing the practical implications of this truth for the day-to-day life of real Christians, with difficulties and sufferings. These videos of this ministry are a blessing. God bless you.
Nope, it just seems like to us because we don't know His secret plan. But He has planned everything from the beggining, including the "changes" that appear to us as changes but are actually perfectly coherent with the original plan.
@@ashley_brown6106 So you are telling me that while the Bible stating numerous times God changing His mind in reality is the opposite? God changing His plan doesnt make His new plan is lesser perfect. God can have millions DIFFERENT plans which are still perfect. God is all-powerful after all.
@@dimitartodorov4826 "For I am the LORD, I change not, therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed." - Malachi 3:6 "Every good and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness [variation] nor shadow of turning." - James 1:17
@@fireflames3639 First of all, are you aware that there are like 10+ verses in the Bible where God repents? If 4 verses say something opposite of 12 verses wouldn't be wiser to interpret the 4 verses by what the 12 say instead of doing to opposite? Second, yes these verses say that God doesn't change. God's character won't ever change, He will be always holy, righteous, faithfull, merciful, all-benevolent etc. That doesn't mean unchangable in any respect. God going for angry to not angry is a type change. The hypostatic union is change since the Word wasn't eternaly incarnated in human and in union with it. God going from not creating to creating is a type of change. The world didn't existed eternally, so God wasn't eterally creating the world. God thinking is a change, since the procces of thinking requires change of thoughts. So God actually repenting aka changing His mind is in line with everything the Bible states about God.
Maybe, but what did you think of the content? When preachers start quoting antiquities not accessible to God's workers, I am immediately suspicious. Even the Catholics nowadays give their adherents the Bible and liturgy in their own language. These preachers look for an alternative way to deny this right. These ponts were probably considered by translators, who wrote for ordinary people, not scholars. Never tell them which translation you are using; it makes you vulnerable to fact-checking.
Yes, he does, in the sense that he changes his attitude when people change their behavior. For example, when God sent a judgment message to the people of ancient Israel, he said: “Perhaps they will listen and each one will turn back from his evil way, and I will change my mind concerning the calamity that I intend to bring on them because of their evil deeds.”-Jeremiah 26:3. Many Bible translations render this verse as saying that God would “repent” over the intended calamity, which could be understood to mean that he had made a mistake. However, the original Hebrew word can mean “change of mind or intention.” One scholar wrote: “A change in man’s conduct brings about a change in God’s judgment.” Of course, just because God can change his mind does not mean that he must change it. Consider some situations where the Bible says that God has not changed his mind: God did not allow Balak to make Him change His mind and curse the nation of Israel.-Numbers 23:18-20. Once King Saul of Israel became firmly set in badness, God did not change his mind about rejecting him as king.-1 Samuel 15:28, 29. God will fulfill his promise to make his Son a priest forever. God will not change His mind.-Psalm 110:4. Doesn’t the Bible say that God never changes? Yes, the Bible records God as saying: “I am Jehovah; I do not change.” (Malachi 3:6) Similarly, the Bible says that God “does not vary or change like the shifting shadows.” (James 1:17) This, however, does not contradict what the Bible says about God changing his mind. God is unchangeable in that his personality and standards of love and justice never alter. (Deuteronomy 32:4; 1 John 4:8) Still, he can give different instructions to people at different times. For instance, God gave opposite instructions to King David for fighting two consecutive battles, yet both methods succeeded.-2 Samuel 5:18-25. Is God sorry that he created humans? No, although he does regret that most people ignore or reject him. Describing conditions before the global Flood of Noah’s day, the Bible says: “Jehovah regretted that he had made men on the earth, and his heart was saddened.” (Genesis 6:6) In this verse, the word “regretted” comes from the Hebrew word that can mean “change of mind.” God changed his mind about most of the people who lived before the Flood because they had become wicked. (Genesis 6:5, 11) Even though he was saddened that they chose to follow a bad course, he did not change his attitude toward the entire human race. In fact, he preserved mankind through the Flood by means of Noah and his family.-Genesis 8:21; 2 Peter 2:5, 9.
So God is eternally miserable? No. He is not sitting in heaven constantly bombarded with sorrow over the 10 billion sins committed per second. God is not worrying. His wrath is stored up and ready to be outpoured according to His plan on the last day.
Numbers 23:19 God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
One of my favorite lecturer. He once visited us in Redeemer Church of Dubai and thought the very first lecture (Systemic Theology) when the Dubai School of Theology started. Thanks Dr. Bruce Ware.
Where do we draw the line then? Sometimes (actually most of the time) we have to (or tend to) interpret the Bible literally, but when literal interpretation is unfavorable then we have to interpret the Bible differently (contextualize). Isn't that a bit "all things to all men"-approach?
You can interpret the Bible any way you want. That is true. But there are ultimately two camps of thought. You can join the camp of Christians who pretend that their theology is purely scriptural and excludes philosophy, logic and science, (because these tools show that their theology results in a monstrously contradictory and morally disgusting worldview) - Or you can join the other club of Christians that know common sense is required to interpret scripture in order to construct a rational theology that makes sense. The first club will be riddles with logical and moral issues, and the second a lot less so (but you'll probably be labelled a heretic). Take the theology of God's strict determinism of all events. This implies that to him, we are essentially static objects, or programmable robots who never make any free decisions, and he planned that the majority of us will be tortured for trillions and trillions of years - but also loves us and expects to have a relationship with us. The second knows that strict determinism contradicts the concept of love and relationship, and so refuses to accept it - not necessarily replacing it with another theory but simply holding to the fact that God gave us conscious will and we will perhaps never know the intricacies of time, causality and eternity because of our tiny 3D ant brains. Good luck choosing!
God can do has he pleases we are all his property to do to whom whatever he chooses let’s rejoice and praise him who is our loving and faithful God. To God be the Glory
if God does not know in advance what going to happen then how did he know me in my mother womb, some people are to smart for their own Good, God help us
Yes God changes His mind. It’s All in the scriptures. Changing your mind and telling a lie are two different things. Just because God changes His mind does not make Him a liar, it makes Him a merciful loving God. Swearing to king David that his descendant would sit on his thrown forever is a promise God could never change.
@@allpraisestothemosthigh4671 He didn't trick humans. He said he'd never destroy man as he did {with a flood}. He does not EVER change his mind about sin... You sin, you die!!! The second time man gets globally destroyed will be by fire... Due to sinning. It's quite simple.
I don’t think that should be interpreted as God realizing what he’s done after the fact and saying “oh shit I probably shouldn’t do that again.” He was letting Noah know that this will be the only time where he uses water as a means of ultimate punishment to the sinful world. Indeed water is now used as a sign of cleansing the sin and entering new life in Christ in the context of baptism.
Right...so rainbows never occurred before this time? Unlikely. Common as nails. Always have been. Might as well ad a pot of gold at the end to complete the fantasy.
Excellent understanding and articulate description of the Lord’s attributes. I would encourage everyone to seek to know God through intuitive knowledge as the highest form of relationship rather than through the limited “thinking mind” because that is always filled with doubt; whereas the “knowing mind” is intuition which is the knower of the truth.
JFairhart No, the best way to know God is through his Word, as per Samuel the prophet. When you rely too heavily on human intuition you are on dangerous ground. So often people intuit errant things. Can God speak to a person that way? Yes he can if he wants, but don’t look to it as your primary source. Read psalm 119 re what David said - Gods Word is a light to our feet and a lamp to our path
Scuba Guy - God’s word is the best way to “renew” the “thinking mind.” The function of the mind is to produce thought after thought and often unassociated thoughts and certainly negative ones as well. What to do? How to discipline such a mind? The Bible suggests meditating on the word day and night to renew such a mind. Very good. Now, what? Is that all there is? Jesus also tells us walking in the spirit, praying in the spirit, following his teachings (there is another good reason to read the word) is being in a relationship with him. So, “spirit” is how the Holy Spirit is in relationship to us, by counseling to “man’s spirit.” If you ignore “spirit” because you don’t trust your ability to recognize it, then it is not developed. Here is a practical example: How many times do you ignore your intuition when it tells you something? How many times do you tell yourself, “Oh, I knew that was going to happen but I ignored my intuition.?” The truth is the Holy Spirit once it dwells within your heart is advising you every moment. What in us resists? What in us rebels to the truth? The best way I have found to distinguish and recognize Holy Spirit is that information will spontaneously arise with a feeling of “knowing it” and more importantly my thinking mind was making no attempt to be involved. If I have doubts about what to do, I simply wait until it is intuitively obvious what to do. As long as my mind is trying to “think it through” I know I don’t have an answer yet. What’s interesting is once you begin to write your questions down and not force an answer, in time the “spontaneous answer” reveals itself very naturally. As though you made no effort to figure it out yourself. Also, an example of telling someone else your question often you get an intuitive answer as you are talking about it especially if it’s someone who cares about your wellbeing. This sharing is what I have found to be true in my life. Everyone has his or her own journey and temperament type and what works varies by individuals. The Good News is that there is a paradigm that works very well for each temperament type.
You can get to know God personally by learning about him and taking steps to please him. God will then “draw close to you.” (James 4:8) The Bible assures us that “he is not far off from each one of us.”-Acts 17:27. Steps to knowing God Read the Bible What the Bible says: “All Scripture is inspired of God.”-2 Timothy 3:16. Meaning: God is the Author of the Bible. He put his thoughts into the minds of the Bible writers. By means of this unique book, God has revealed his will for us. He has also revealed facets of his personality, including his love, justice, and mercy.-Exodus 34:6; Deuteronomy 32:4. What you can do: Read the Bible daily. (Joshua 1:8) Reflect on what you read, asking yourself: ‘What does this teach me about God as a Person?’-Psalm 77:12. As an example, read Jeremiah 29:11, and then ask yourself: ‘What does God want for me-peace or calamity? Is he a vengeful God, or does he want me to have a good future?’ Observe creation What the Bible says: “[God’s] invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world’s creation onward, because they are perceived by the things made.”-Romans 1:20. Meaning: God’s physical creations reveal aspects of his personality, just as a work of art can reveal much about the artist or a complex machine can say much about the inventor. To illustrate, the capacity and complexity of the human brain reveal God’s wisdom, and the controlled energy in the sun and other stars demonstrates his power.-Psalm 104:24; Isaiah 40:26. What you can do: Take time to observe and learn about our natural world. As you do, ask yourself, ‘What do the amazing designs manifest in nature reveal about God?’ * Of course, there are many things that nature cannot tell us about our Creator. That is why he gave us the Bible. Use God’s name What the Bible says: “I will protect him because he knows my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him.”-Psalm 91:14, 15. Meaning: God, whose name is Jehovah, gives special attention to those who know his name and use it respectfully. * (Psalm 83:18; Malachi 3:16) By telling us his personal name, God has introduced himself to us. “I am Jehovah. That is my name,” he says.-Isaiah 42:8. What you can do: Use Jehovah’s name when referring to him. Talk to Jehovah in prayer What the Bible says: “Jehovah is near to all those calling on him.”-Psalm 145:18. Meaning: Jehovah draws close to those who pray to him in faith. Prayer is an aspect of worship that shows our deep respect for God. What you can do: Pray to God often. (1 Thessalonians 5:17) Tell him your concerns and how you feel.-Psalm 62:8. * Build faith in God What the Bible says: “Without faith it is impossible to please God well.”-Hebrews 11:6. Meaning: To draw close to God, we must have faith in him. In the Bible, having faith means more than simply believing that God exists. It also means having complete trust in him, including his promises and standards. Trust is crucial to a good relationship. What you can do: Genuine faith is based on knowledge. (Romans 10:17) So study the Bible and prove to yourself that you can trust God and his advice. Jehovah’s Witnesses would be happy to study the Bible with you. * Do what pleases God What the Bible says: “This is what the love of God means, that we observe his commandments.”-1 John 5:3. Meaning: Jehovah is close to those who show their love for him by doing their best to obey his commandments. What you can do: As you study the Bible, note what God likes and dislikes. Ask yourself, ‘What adjustments can I make in order to please my Creator?’-1 Thessalonians 4:1. Experience God’s care by applying his advice What the Bible says: “By experience you will see that [God] is good.”-Psalm 34:8, The Bible in Basic English. Meaning: God invites you to see for yourself how good he is. When you experience his love and support, you will want to draw close to him. What you can do: As you read the Bible, apply God’s advice and experience the benefits this brings. (Isaiah 48:17, 18) Also observe real-life examples of individuals who, with God’s help, overcame challenges, improved their lives and the lives of their families, and found true happiness. Misconceptions about knowing God Misconception: God is too powerful and important to want to be close to us. Fact: Even though God is the most powerful and important Being in all existence, he invites us to draw close to him. The Bible contains many examples of men and women who became his close friends.-Acts 13:22; James 2:23. Misconception: We cannot know God because he is a mystery. Fact: Some things about God are difficult to comprehend, such as his being an invisible Spirit. Still, we can get to know God. In fact, the Bible says that we need to know him in order to gain everlasting life. (John 17:3) In terms we can understand, the Bible tells us about our Creator, revealing his personality, his purpose for mankind and for the earth, and his standards. (Isaiah 45:18, 19; 1 Timothy 2:4) And as mentioned, the Bible also reveals God’s name. (Psalm 83:18) We can thus not only know God but also draw close to him.-James 4:8.
Lord God Almighty, of Infinite Mercy . the same, the past, the present, the future, without beginning or without end, from everlasting to everlasting, forever and ever . Amen
He does know in advance but he allows interaction such as when he says to put Him in Remembrance,.. we KNOW He ALREADY KNOWS what you might put Him in Remembrance of, but puts the onus on us to recite, for instance, that He remember the Covenant with Abraham, to sway His Judgement,.. it has nothing to do with Him knowing, .it has everything to do with Him allowing interaction where our prayer CAN and DOES change outcomes, this world is not hardwired the way it's to be, but has latitude for Prayer which is why we CAN Hope,.. And when Justice is seen, we'll see many things that could have been vastly different had we had Faith and Prayed our Hopes through His Son,..,...
God’s unlikeness to human beings is asserted in Bible: God does not sleep (Ps. 121:4); he is not a human being that he should lie or change his mind (Num. 23:19; 1 Sam. 15:29). Amen
2 Now Abraham said of Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah. 3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, “Indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is [a]a man’s wife.” 4 But Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, “Lord, will You slay a righteous nation also? 5 Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she, even she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the [b]integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this.” 6 And God said to him in a dream, “Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her. 7 Now therefore, restore the man’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours.”
Indeed , rightly said God knows from end to the beginning. That was the reason why God first created hell and then heaven. Then He created human. As said God when it comes for a judgement, He never diaappoints the righteous. You are a true believer, may God bless you. Amen.
Fearing God today is no guarantee that one will fear Him 15 years in the future. God knew that Abraham feared Him prior to Isaac’s birth. So why did He test Abraham 15 years later? Could it be that Abraham, over that 15 year period, acted in ways that showed that he didn’t fear God? When Abraham was obedient to God & about to sacrifice Isaac, God got his confirmation that Abraham, in fact, still feared Him and then He said “now I know…”. At least this is how I understand that story. Peace and blessings to you all.
It wasn’t confirmation that God needed, it might have been confirmation that Abraham needed. Just like God knew where Adam was in the garden, but He asks Adam where he is at… not so God could find him, but so Adam could realize where he was at - naked, afraid, hiding from God.
For I the Lord do not change (Malachi 3:6). God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? (Numbers 23:19)
Part of his talk reminded me of teaching a class once on Gen.22 & I commented that we don't know how old Isaac was at the time (he's old enough to carry the wood for the sacrifice, so he's not a pup, yeh?). A brother said, "Well, we know he's not a teenager, because then his father couldn't really consider offering him up as a 'sacrifice' ". Cracked everybody up!
He does change his mind----Scripture attests to it....Jesus did it with the Syrophoenician women---Father God did it with Moses (was going to kill the people but Moses intervened)--he was going to destroy Ninivah but he changed his mind---He created man and said it was good---then later on God said he was sorry for creating man.......
Here is proof that God knows it all NLT, Ps. 139:16 NLT Eccl. 6:10 Lamentation CSB. 3:37 Amos 3:6 these are clear scriptures, and there are so many more, lets just study His word. The only schools that I've gone to were for computers, and the school of kneeology in prayer for 20 plus years. Thanks Professor great video...
Nope, it just seems like to us because we don't know His secret plan. But He has planned everything from the beggining, including the "changes" that appear to us as changes but are actually perfectly coherent with the original plan.
@@ashley_brown6106 he did change his mind when he actually conversed with old testament figures. He knew what they would request in advance and in the end he got his way. In Gomorrah he wanted to destroy the city and ended up negociating its destruction. Once it was agreed that there were none worth saving he let Abraham and his family leave and destroyed the city after they left. He understood the mind of man and he had to relate to them on their level.
The passage I was hoping Dr. Ware would address was Exodus 32:14, where God has told Moses that because of the obstinate behavior of the people, He would destroy them and make a nation of Moses’s descendants. Moses then makes his appeal to God and verse 14 says, “So the LORD changed His mind about the harm which He said He would do to His people,” (NASB). I don’t believe this passage supports the idea that God “learns” something, but, what I’m left with is either Moses talked God into a better plan (God's original), or God never actually intended to do what He said He would do. Neither option is acceptable to me.
Careful here. There are cases where God has explicitly stated something and then "appeared" to change His mind. I don't think there is anyway around it. I don't know what Open Theism is, but know what scripture teaches. The case he gives is with respect to a given event - the tearing of the kingdom from Saul. That is the context where Samuel is removing any doubt from Saul that this would occur - even some early manuscripts use the word relent instead of repent. Indeed even Saul's humility before the Lord did not change this. This is the same issue that Calvinism faces; taking a specific context and applying it generally. I think the proper usage of the Hebrew word nachem is that of not changing His mind but being sorry for what He has done. God is generally not sorry for what He does because His judgments are just. But again context is important. A better explanation is this: When God tells us something He plans to do He is being completely honest; that it is His intent. Yet God will not always do what He say to whom he says based on man's actions, at least at an individual level. People receive the promises of God through faith (Hebrews 11:33). No faith, no promise realized. If so God would know that He would change His mind. Only in this way do we avoid the deceptive nature of the the presented argument. This seems more consistent with scripture.
@Ben Jones Thanks i updated (because i had a wording error in there), however the Hebrew word naham (change his mind) still underlies the passage and is more often related to being sorry. But even here we have to be careful because of "And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them" Genesis 6:6-7. The problem is that we can see that God does not do things that He said He would for certain people, but it is not God's truthfulness at stake, but rather man's refusal to remain faithful and realize those promises. The issue is not God's truthfulness for He is always true, but rather whether man has the faith, at an individual level, to receive those promises. Let me know if you want other examples.
@Ben Jones Ben, that is foreknowledge and we agree. But there are two places where the terms you use can get us in trouble. First is sovereign. What does that mean to you? It means different things to different people and the way you use it above is not correct. Second, lie. God does not lie. That does not mean he always does for a person what He said he would. Let me know if you need examples from scripture. The problem occurs because people make the false assumption that a promise of God will always be realized by those given to. Let me give you two examples. First if i promise to take you to the fair this weekend if you take out the trash, there are conditions attached to that. But even if i just promise to take you to the fair it is still conditional because it assumes you will not do something crazy. So lets say i promise to take you to the fair this weekend but you kill yourself before i can fulfill my promise. Did i lie because i did not actually take you to the fair? No you did not realize the conditions of the promise. Did i change my mind because i did not take you to the fair? No i fully intended to. This is what we see in scripture and is consistent with God's sovereignty.
@Ben Jones Show me in scripture where the ideas of permissive or decreed wills is. In fact humans have assigned as many as five different wills to God. People use the word permissive will to suggest evil is still in His will. When someone murders another, it is NOT in His will. The fact that He is sovereign does not change this. He may allow it, but that does not mean He willed it in any way. We can see this easily in scripture by God telling us specifically what His will is only to have man not do it. God permits evil that does not further His cause. God is sovereign but He does not always use His omnipotence. We agree completely that God does allow things and if He chose, could intervene. We also agree that He is holy and is not in anyway responsible for sin. But I would offer that if you use the term permissive will as Calvinists do (ex. James White), it can be claimed that God is responsible for sin because it is within His will, He could prevent it, and it brings glory to Him. I think you would have a hard time scripturally justifying that.
@Ben Jones First, i do not subscribe to the "God never violates free will idea." Nebuchadnezzar is another example of where God overrode a person's free will. There are many people who would claim that God overrode the will of people in scripture but it does not actually say this in many cases. But the examples of where he does are limited and given the amount of sin in the world, in times past and present, including his elect, we can see that most of the time God does NOT restrain human will. He will lead. We can choose to follow. In fact in the example you quote, God even tells Abimelech that Abimelech was trying to do what was right (integrity of heart). Your answers: First i assume when you say commandment, you mean one of the 10 commandments as opposed to other commands. Yes there is a commandment not to murder. It is His will. Not his decreed or permissive will, just His will. Again these are human terms, not what scripture teaches. it should be noted that God has used men to visit vengeance and wrath on people using other people. Yes God's decreed (that is what he decrees and i am only using this word because you asked a direct question here using that term) will is His only will scripturally; it is what He desires and in some cases will enforce. Remember what the Hebrew word rason (will) means: desire, pleasure. Again, there are men who will say that God has two or more wills. Yes there is a commandment that says that telling a lie is a sin. Thou shall not bear false witness. But there are other non-10 commandment teachings that also indicate that lying is a sin.
@Ben Jones These do not make the point i think. In fact, they further complicate the issue. Just look at the lexical construction. If we accept God's will as that which God desires then decreed will is: God decrees what he desires. But then permissive will is: God permits what He desires. Since we lump sin under His permissive will, we can only conclude one thing logically - God permits His desire for sin. This is where i depart with the Calvinists who in effect, make God the first cause of sin. Calvin himself said men can only sin by divine decree (I.18). But God does NOT desire sin in any way; it is a violation of His character for there is no darkness in Him. I acknowledge that Jesus is a separate case and that was going to be completed as one of God's purposes. But God Himself tells us that in advance. Also there are other purposes of God which will not be halted. But a being with foreknowledge can sidestep the free will of men in many, many ways and with omnipotence can enforce His will if the need be. However in the end, God has one will and He has been kind enough to tell us what is within His will, its just that the one will is not always done.
I didn't really hear an explanation on God relenting making Saul king to mean something other than regretting a decision. Can someone help me understand otherwise?
What he (and so many others) fail to mention is that nearly all the times when God describes the future, He is describing things that HE will be doing. That does not involve foreknowledge. It just means that if God wills something to be done--and pledges that it will be--then it will come about. That explains most (not all) of the instances in Scripture where God predicts the future. I will add something: If God knows everything that He is ever going to do (into infinity), then God is no longer free. God cannot do other than what He knows He is going to do. That's, eh....a bit of a problem. Forget the fact that it's just another place where we doubt what the biblical authors believed. "Yeah, they thought this . . . but we know better."
@Brian Rossiter aren’t you applying the tiny, grasping, finite way in which man conceptualizes life and existence onto God? God made us from dirt. We are mudmen to whom God loaned a spark. The book of Job is a real humbler.
it is a simple yet profound rules of biblical interpretation to let the clearest verses shed light on the unclear verses. Either the Bible is contradictory, in which case it is untrue and worthless, or else we need to use reason to interpret the apparent paradoxes in such a way that the Bible shows itself not to be contradictory. This professor has done a good job of that. He is not coming up with something new; he is simply teaching what the church (and O.T. Judaism) has always taught and believed. When people come up with "new" theologies, like Open Theism, the New Perspective on Paul, or the Emerging Church, the first thing we should do is put the burden of proof on them. They are flying in the face of what biblical scholars and theologians have taught for centuries; so if they can't come up with an iron-clad argument that shows conclusively that the church has been in error for 2000 years, then they need to be disbelieved.
God clearly reveals that he changes his mind. Your statement of use the clear to interpret what is not clear seems reasonable. But then it depends on which side you deem clear and which you deem unclear. Seems to just be a way to arrive at ones already accepted comfortable position.
Jonah knew God would be gracious and Jonah also knew that there was a chance that Nineveh would repent and so therefore he didn’t want to go. he did not know that Nineveh would repent he simply didn’t want to give that a chance
Exodus 32 says that Moses intervened and convinced God not to destroy the people, even though they were disobedient, corrupt, stubborn, and rebellious: "Then the Lord relented and did not bring upon the people the disaster he had threatened." (Exodus 32:14)
If God didn’t change His mind regarding Nineveh, was their threat of judgment empty? God does not lie. That less-controversial (I think) fact suggests that He is willing to follow through with a threat of judgment even though He knows He will answer a cry for mercy. It makes sense to me that God can change His mind while also being omniscient. Why shouldn’t God be able to change His mind even when He knows He will do so? The idea that we may be unable to do so if we were all-knowing is no reason because God does not fit in our box and because we are not omniscient.
Yes we can have confidence that God is God but do we really believe we have Him all figured out when He speaks or have complete confidence in what He speaks.which presents the challenge of excepting everything He says and not using one part to nullify another.
Like with Nicodemus, I believe we shouldn't get confused with the language present. There's a deeper understanding that you can't get if you're going to get hung up on if regret is possible with God. Regret doesn't just come about once future knowledge is obtained, you can regret something while having future knowledge of the outcome. Now, understanding the reason God went on with decisions He knew He would regret is what needs to be pondered. There's a reason for everything. Even for the supposed unfruitful decision. Without Isreal seeing how much of a terrible king Saul would turn out, they might have never learned to understand why David was so much better, a man after God's own heart.
That's why the fall from Grace is impossible .. you see time as a single object if you stand outside it . Eternal beings can't be surprised unless they answer to a larger clock . Is God's will alone an entirely different type of body?
This is still very hard to wrap your head around. Because if you say God is all knowing even those times where he gives people the free choice to make a decision that moves to part 2 of plan A as you say. God would have already knew that would have happened
He is as a Father is, we are as children are - His expectation for us was and is great.. it was and is a learning process.. there is uncertainty.. we have free will.. circumstances change.. The Rules and Laws of The Father do not, however Jesus Christ the Son came about to show us Just Who our Heavenly Father really is... infinitely Righteous, Loving, Just, Merciful. The Epitome of Perfect.. something we can only ever strive for.. All Glory to God, he who is most high - Creator of Heaven and Earth... May he be Swift and Merciful in his Righteous Judgement.. (this is my humble opinion, i will always remain teachable.)
The question was not regarding if God is omniscient. Why does God’s foreknowledge preclude His ability to change His mind? How can we say He is unable to change His mind based on our finite and frail logic regarding what it’s like to be omniscient? If God’s omniscience requires that His mind is unchangeable, does that not seal all of our individual fates and make Him implacable?
- the story of Adam and Eve might change the future if their choices were different than what we know it. - the bad people in Noh time if they were repented they might avoid the great flood. - this be applied to all the Biblical stories; Lot and Sodom and Gomarra's fate. Moses hitting twice the rock. King David life errors. etc - every humans and single individual's choices have the potential and impact to change the future. - every positive prayer that has a response can change the future. - free will and prayer can make longer or shorter the age of the world, infact we pray saying Maranatha to end quickly the suffering. - God remains OMNISCIENT no matter of our free decisions and heard prayers. in fact the meaning of all prophecies written in The Bible, they happened in the future in the exact time and way they are described. God knows the end of the world.
the bible does not line up with our philosophical understanding of God's foreknowledge. therefore, the bible must not mean what it actually says... Not a good way to do theology...
@@carstenstampe not sure what your point is for all three main views recognises God's decrees and foreknowledge but differs on the extent and means. Calvinism says that God foreknows only because he foreordain everything. Armenianism says that God foreordains certain things but how he foreknows everything is a mystery Open Theism says that God foreordains certain things and by his infinite wisdom is able to foreknow all possible outcomes. God has the perogative and sovereignty to change his mind concerning what that has not been decreed.
I'd rather think of God being the One who created man with a true free will, knowing ahead of time that our choices might not align with His purpose. Because he has contingencies based upon this, and being able to cause all things to work together for good, He can be a God of the possible as well as the actual. Neither choice by us in any situation baffles Him nor besmirches his character. He is not a wishy-washy Sovereign but clearly can deal with any variety of possibilities. He seemed to deal ok with Abraham's pleading to not destroy the Israelites and begin anew as well as seemingly do something different for Hezekiah regarding his announced imminent death. If/when He does change His mind because of human prayer, it doesn't show a weakness but rather a strength.
Bruce Ware brutally distorts 1 Sam 15. The text is clear. 15:10 says God regretted making Saul king because he didn’t fully carry out God’s commands. Therefore, God officially rejects Saul from being king ever again and instead looks for another king who will be better than Saul (15:26). Saul attempted to plead with Samuel that he may still hold on to his kingship (15:27 and Saul grasping for Samuel’s robe) but it was of no use , God had already decided to hand over the kingdom to someone else (David). THIS is what God would not change his mind about! God officially decided to dismiss Saul as king. No amount of pleading on Saul’s part would change God’s mind regarding this choice. His decision stands (15:28). Thus, God regrets that he made Saul king, but God will not change his mind about finding a new king. It’s that simple, folks. I am continually astonished as to how Calvinist professors can miss something so elementary in the text. The reality is, however, that calvinists are very uncomfortable with the idea of God regretting anything, because that means that human actions have the ability to emotionally affect God or causally influence God which inconveniently contradicts their pathetic doctrine of divine impassibility. Impassibility doesn’t come from the Bible, it’s a Greek philosophical and metaphysical concept originally derived from Plato and Aristotle who viewed god not as a loving personal creator who hears prayers and forgives sins, but a god who rather was a distant nonpersonal abstract rational principle. And yet, these Greek philosophical ideas such as permeated the church from the beginning and onward from Justin Martyr to Augustine, Boethius Peter Lombard, and Thomas Aquinas. The Reformers were all Thomists! By the way, ever wonder why most Christians believe God is atemporal (outside of time) yet the Bible never describes God as being such? (Psalm 90:2 won’t help you. All it says is that God has existed eternally. Existing eternally in time is not the same thing as atemporally. Please understand this!) Ever wonder why most Christians believe God created time yet the Bible nowhere says that God created time? Hmmm 🤔
Exactly! The Bible is full of instances where God is affected emotionally by things that humans do. He is grieved in his heart at humanities evil and regrets creating humanity (Gen 6:6-7), God is jealous and doesn't want his people worshipping other gods (Ex 20:5). God changes his mind to preserve his integrity amongst the other nations (Ex 32:9-14). God also changes his mind if the behavioral status of people on earth changes (Jer 18:7-11). God changed his mind about what kind of feces should be used to bake bread on (Ezek 4:12-15). God can have false expectations (Isa 5:2,4,7; Jer 3:7,19). God's spirit can be grieved (Eph 4:30). God is pleased with the smell of sacrifices (Gen 8:21), God gets angry, though slowly (Ex 34:6). Calvinists will say "oh no no! You see, none of these texts actually mean what they say. What God is "REALLY" doing is condescending himself to the level of human comprehension to communicate his truth and will in a time conditioned way." Umm, ok . So how is that any different than man making god in his own image?
I personally don't think our creator can change his mind like you and me. He already had plans for me and you even before we were formed in our mothers womb. He already knew how he would redeemed his chosen ones even before creation. The example of Saul being stripped of kingship is because Jesus was supposed to be from the tribe of Judah. Which tribe was Saul from? Tribe of Benjamin. Let's not try to outsmart our God's plan by saying he can change his mind. His plan for you and me and mankind were planned even before creation. Perfectly planned by our triune God!!
@@EAD1142 I respect your personal beliefs, but if you are a Reformed Christian, then it doesn't matter what you "personally believe". The text of 1 Sam 15 disagrees with the classical theistic doctrine of immutability, as do other texts in the Old Testament which either say that God changes his mind, or that he could change his mind given certain circumstances (1 Sam 15:10, Genesis 6:6-7, Exodus 32:14, Jonah 3:10, Jeremiah 18:1-11, Numbers 14:11-20, Ezek 4:12-15).
Judgment is constant! But when the people look out for mercy, they will receive mercy! It's either Judgment or mercy in every case. That doesn't sound like changing of mind, but rather, having mercy on the guys who pursued after God's mercy. Lastly, He also knows who would take advantage of Mercy and who won't take advantage of His mercy. We are the only ones limited by time (chronos)... He lives in Eternity!
@@melchisson You didn't address my statement at all. If you said you were going to do something and didn't do it, there would only be 3 reasons why. You either forgot, you changed your mind or you lied. God CANNOT forget, so he only has two options. HE lies or he changes his mind. Saying you're going to do something when you know you are not going to do it is called deception and deception is lying.
For the matter of King Saul why is it written in the scripture as if he regrets or wish he hadn’t, if he knew how it would turn out. Same with Abraham, why put him through that if he knew all along that he feared him. Imagine on a human level which we are, a voice tells you to take up your beloved son to a temple for sacrifice. The torture, the mental anguish, the pain, the struggle as he ties his son on that temple raise the dagger knowing that he is about to kill his son only for god to say “Abraham stop stop now I know you love and fear me” it’s like you’ve been PUNKED if he already knew that Abraham had this love and fear for him? WHY?????
We have a universe that is ever expanding, possibly with new creations beyond our scope. Life on earth changes and evolves. We ourselves grow in character just as our bodies grow and age. Who's to say God does not constantly evolve as well? If we attribute God to infinity, would that also mean he expands and grows?
Some of these accounts are unsatisfying, the passages don't self define the discrepancy, and the truth is defined elsewhere. I really enjoy the translations of original text because it's one of the few ways to qualify discrepancies. I just wish there were more tools to investigate with.
God speaks to people in ways we can understand especially the ones He's talking to. If He wouldn't do so, we would not understand a bit of it. The hard thing for us today is to understand them. But of course, when we rely on His Spirit for interpretation, we will 'know'.
it's not about whether or not God knows exactly what will take place. God knows EVERYTHING that could EVER take place, and He knows all future possibilities as if they ARE "the future". I don't personally care what you think this does to God's power. God is altogether more powerful and praiseworthy if He is able to leverage His wisdom in contingencies and strategy for different potential outcomes. We are free creatures and so are God's enemies. Yet He alone is the sovereign guide who is responsible for judging and shaping the path that history will take.
@TheOverlapLifewithTimBarber Ehh, it's not much of an answer tbh. Listening to You, Warren and Chris Fischer has been making me think on OT a lot lately. I'm not settled on it, but it's bugging me 😂. My biggest issue with trying to find good answers against OT is primarily this "anthropomorphic" excuse. Like, is there a Bible verse that says mankind or scripture can only explain or understand God in anthropomorphic language? That the scripture doesn't RREEEAALLLYY mean what it says? If I started going through the Bible and started ripping out pages of scripture that contain an "anthropomorphism" how much of my Bible would be left?
If we are truly free to think and act, then God does not know with absolute certainty what we are gong to do in some situations. It is true that it says that God knows the end from the beginning, but is this an statement of knowing the future which has not happened or being able to bring the future circumstances to pass by God’s power to intervene in the affairs of men, the end result is the same. God shapes the present to become what He wants in the future. His knowledge of the present is inexhaustible so God know what this present knowledge shapes what tomorrow will be like. God can also influence His children to act so that His will is done since He can guide us by His Spirit.
He acknowledges that scripture often depicts God as changing his mind. So OT has clear biblical precedent. OT is simply the proposition that the future is not exhaustively settled. It can be mostly settled and OT still true. Isa.46:10 speaks to that which He has determined/settled to God. Many other passages show that certain things are not settled. God does not change his mind in the way we do as He is always true to His character. But being true to His character often requires changing course in response to what men do. Jeremiah 18:1-11 makes this very clear. Critical but often missing in critiques of OT such as this one is how we understand time. If you're looking into OT, familiarize yourself with presentism vs eternalism. If you assume eternalism, OT is seen as an attack on God's omniscience. If you affirm presentism (as open theists do) then you can affirm both open Theism and God's omniscience. He basically affirms exactly what open theists say at 12:15. :)
at this time i understand it like this: - the story of Adam and Eve might -change the future -if their choices were different than what we know it. - the bad people in Noh time if they were repented they might avoid the great flood. - this be applied to all the Biblical stories; Lot and Sodom and Gomarra's fate. Moses hitting twice the rock. King David life errors. etc - every humans and single individual's choices have the potential and impact to change the future. - every positive prayer that has a response can change the future. - free will and prayer can make longer or shorter the age of the world, infact we pray saying Maranatha to end quickly the suffering. - God remains OMNISCIENT no matter of our free decisions and heard prayers. in fact the meaning of all prophecies written in The Bible, they happened in the future in the exact time and way they are described. God knows the end of the world.
I loved this, because this shows that the meaning of the same word is in accordance to what the context is in the verse. People use the word fulfill wrong just like he's saying about change. So if you place the meaning wrong in the verse you miss the actual truth of the verse. Matthew 5:17 is a prime example of what he is say when it comes to the word fulfill. People in Matthew 5:17 make the word fulfill means to destroy, abolish or get rid of something. But if you read the verse the way these people think it reads " Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets, I am not come to destroy but destroy " The word fulfill has like 5 different meanings in Greek, but as we see if Jesus would have said it the way I typed it with the word fulfill meaning to destroy it, the verse makes no sense. Jesus came to fulfill ( uphold) or to magnify the law to show us how we could keep it through love for our father in heaven just like he did. Paul said love is the fulfilling of the law not the end of it.
Galatians 2:16 "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified." The OT law is obsolete. Hebrews 8:13 "In that He says, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away." Has the New Covenant been established? Yes 2000 years ago. So the Old Covenant is obsolete. Now something that is obsolete isn't worthless, it is simply no longer needed or used.
@@benjones7218 James 2:14-26 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without [a]your works, and I will show you my faith by [b]my works. 19 You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe-and tremble! 20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is [c]dead? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? 22 Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made [d]perfect? 23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was [e]accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. 24 You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. 25 Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? 26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. Romans 2:13 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified. The works of the Law was to condemn us for our sin, we are under a new covenant my friend but if you read Dueteronomy 4 and 5 two different coveanants were made. The first was the Mosaic covenant the 613 levitical laws that pointed to Christ and the Second was the Ten Commandments. Hebrews 8:8-11 says For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: 9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. 10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: 11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. It's clear here that Paul is quoting from Jeremiah 31:31-34 because they say the exact same thing, The ten commandments covenant was now to be written on the heart of anyone who believe and accept Christ. See until love for God is completely fulfilled in your heart you can't love him or your neighbor like Christ did, which is why Paul says love is the fulfilling of the LAW. The difference between you and I are you see the commandments as a list of do's and don't!! I see them as a list of I will, and I won't!! One is legalism ( by the works of the law shall no man be justified ) and one is loyalty through love if the commandments are not in your heart then sin prevails over your life because you continue to yield to it, instead of doing what Paul also says in Philipians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. The problem were not the commandments, Paul in Hebrews 8:8 says it was the people that fault was found with. Aything God creates is perfect including the Law, and since the temple on earth contained the Ark of the Covenant it says in Exodus it was a replica of the temple in heaven, if that is true then guess what's in the Ark in heaven? The ten commandments, God's personal and morale standard of his character that was lived out by Christ in human form. Did Jesus sin? Of course not, so if he didn't sin the law was made perfect in him as our example as of how the commandments affect your life, love for God and man, if the Lord is Lord of your life then the commandments are not greivioussome they are as the psalmist King David says " A delight " Your problem is you see the law as something that condems you, I see it as something that liberates me from sin and sets me free.
@@benjones7218 Also that word Justified or Justification in the Greek means to be unique and set apart, if we are no different through loyalty to God then we are no different from others in this world, the commandments seperate us from everyone else when they asbide in us.
@Ben Jones Your not grasping my point Ben, you don't keep the Law to be saved!! You fulfill it just as Christ did when you are saved!! Saying the Law can't be fulfilled in ourselves as it was in Christ after repentance is saying the devil is strong enough to get you to sin, but Christ isn't strong enough to keep you from it! Btw, what is sin? Paul and John both concure it is breaking the commandments of God. Without a standard to uphold there is no definition of sin. By nailing the commandments to the cross you are saying there hasn't been a sinner since the cross. Christ made the commandments full in his own life and ministry by full and complete submission of his will to his father's will and not his own out of love, this is why Paul says " Love is the fulfilling of the Law. " Once we say there is no more standard to identify sin, like a mirror identifies a blemish on our face, we don't see our sin. Satan knows if he can get rid of the commandments we don't see our sin, if we don't see our sin we don't need Christ. The commandments are only condemning to someone who hasn't fully submitted there life fully to Christ or has made complete restitution with him like a new convert, a new convert who accepts Christ has been convicted of his sin, see's his sin, ask for foregivenss and for Christ to come into his life. This is where Grace comes in. Grace covers us with Christ's righteousness while we are working out our salvation through fear and trembling, while the standard of perfection is a sinless life like Christ, Grace covers us as we walk with the Lord trying to gain the victories of the sin in our life, and should we die without that perfect standard perfected in us it is the blood & Righteousness of Christ that covers us. Is the standard of a Christian life to be like Christ himself? Yes!! Did Jesus through love fulfill all the commandments? Yes!! People should becareful bro when they say we can't be perfect as Christ was perfected, we can be perfected in that way through Christ Philipians 4:13. Once you say that you make the devil bigger than your God. That's like saying " Satan has the power to tempt us to sin, but Christ doesn't have the power to keep us from it.
Jonah did not believe God has exhaustive foreknowledge. This is demonstrated by Jonah's running from God. Jonah believed that if he ran that this running is not something God foresaw and that by running he could ensure that a course of events would remain CERTAIN if he disobeyed. The concept of timelessness as read INTO Scripture had not even been exposed to Hebrew writers because the concept came later with Parmenides.
Is Isaiah, God is not asserting His deity on knowing the future but upon being able to do that which He says He will do. The test is not what God sees, but on what He does.
It's weird when I pause the video and look up these verses. It is like the whole argument being made by Bruce Ware falls apart like the house of cards. 1 Samuel 15 he tries to show that God never changes His mind in verse 29. In context, God changes His mind on allowing Saul to become King, but will not change His mind on allowing him to continue to reign for the sake of Israel. If God planned out the end from the beginning and someone, like Saul doesn't want to play ball with God's plan, then God can change His mind on keeping Saul in power, but maintain his judgement for the sake of His ultimate purpose. To me, open theism can make perfect sense of this passage if you are willing to check all your preconceptions at the door. 🤷♂
So God created everything. Everything, he gave man the ability to change his mind. He's all powerful, and all knowing. Why would humans think he can't change his mind.
I am not sure where you get your information from but this what written in the scriptures Malachi 3:6 6 For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. There have more like this scriptures too where Yeshua say he never change
Many scriptures where God test man to see what is in his heart,God has given us free will to make our own choices.He will cause things to happen to test what we will do.God is not afraid not to know beforehand what our decisions will be.Few passages with words in caps reasoning God does not know how we will choose. ''Gen 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, LEST he PUT FORTH HIS hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: Gen 6:5 And GOD SAW that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Gen 6:6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at HIS heart. Gen 18:20 And the LORD said, Because the CRY of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; Gen 18:21 I will go down now, and SEE WHETHER they have done altogether ACCORDING to the CRY OF IT, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know. Gen 11:4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. Gen 11:5 And the LORD came down to SEE the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. Gen 11:6 And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Gen 11:7 Go to, let US go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. Exo 16:4 Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may PROVE them, whether they WILL walk in my law, or ''
Therefore this your line of thinking states ones destiny. People have a predestination, heaven or hell. Doesn't matter what you do. Freewill is then not real because God already knows who's going where in the end. Freewill is no longer needed.
Regarding Nineveh repenting, we can assume that God brought about the repentance of the people, so He not only knew what would happen, He made it happen: 2Ch 30:11 However, some men of Asher, of Manasseh, and of Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. 2Ch 30:12 The hand of God was also on Judah to give them one heart to do what the king and the princes commanded by the word of the LORD. 2Ti 2:25 . . . God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 2Ti 2:26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.
I like the saying "Jesus is life, the rest is just details " His word is truth and all things were formed by it. All those details are for our sake. Look and hear why I did this thing. If it weren't relayed to us in this manor, we couldn't grasp the necessity of the action. I do however believe that God resents some things that have to be done for the better ending. Like spanking a child.
What about with the warning that Jonah gave Nineveh? Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.” 3 Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it. 4 Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” 5 The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. 6 When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust. 7 This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. 8 But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. 9 Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.” 10 When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.
I have a question: the part where 2 Samuel says that God incited David to number the fighting men of Israel, and then in the Chronicles it says that Satan incited David to number the fighting men. Also, in 2 Kings it talks about how Asa did not remove the high places from Judah, but in Chronicles it says first that the high places were removed, and then at the end it says that the high places were not removed. Can we have a video on that please, unless it exists already?
2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
One thing most people miss in Genesis 22:12 (“now I know…”) is that it was *the angel* speaking, not God. So of course the angel could learn things from man’s actions, but you can’t use this passage to prove that God learned anything.
at 12:13 this gentleman describes what Open theism actually is, and defends it. It amazes me how people who hold to strong divine simplicity, or the pagan "unknowable God" seem incapable of considering the nuanced views of Open theism, and dynamic omnisciences.
So using this logic, how does current church doctrine agree with that of the Messiah? Think .. Meditate .. Did the selfsame GOD of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob change or not? Judging by current Christian doctrine, He did ..
I am currently searching for the truth of this matter and I cannot seem to find peace in Calvinism, Arminianism or Open Theism. Although I tend to think open theism is closer to the truth. The reason is that I feel that every one of these doctrines or viewpoints seems to have a flaw or many flaws. I think however that you can still fully trust in an open theist God. The reason is that in that case, yes He does not know what human actions will take place however He knows what the best and safest option is. If you ask for guidance and He gives the best option based on his infinite knowledge of the current situation and the possible futures and IF human action or chance were to hinder the option He recommended then He would take action so that the problem is averted. Ill give an example. You reach a fork in the road and God knows that on the right road, a drunk person has started driving on the wrong lane and if u went there you would crash and die. So God tells you to go on the left road where everything is completely fine. However, a driver hits a pothole in the road and the driver loses control of the car and it is going to go on the opposite lane (and crash with you). In that case, God has promised you that taking the left road is safe so He remains faithful to his promise and controls the car to stay on the correct lane. Does it make sense? I think we can still trust God if he is "open" because He is still perfect and cannot lie. One way or another his promises will come true. The same obviously applies to Prophecies
It is similar to God asking Adam and Eve where they are at after they had sinned. It wasn't like God didn't know where they were. He knew but it was for their sake that He asks those questions and makes those statements.
Pray for me please I am a lost Sinner. I am a hipocrite trying to repent, pray that the Spirit would convict me and give me a heart of repentance.
Read the word read the word read the word
Cry to God everyday
Be persistent
Everyday is a struggle..
Well, if you mean that then the only thing you need to do is ask Jesus to forgive you. As simple as that. What does the Bible say whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. What else does it say? If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead you will be saved. It's simple enough for a child understand. You ask God to forgive you and save you that's all you need. You're going to have to just take Yahweh at his word..
My friend do as Jesus says, repent, and believe in the virgin birth, death, resurrection, and the sending of the holy spirit to dwell in all Christian's, then go and sin no more.
I got you vanilla Warrior
Repent your sins means .. change your mind from thinking you can correct yourself or you trying to fit in God's standard by obeying laws or your work to be righteous .Repent doesn't mean to change your daily activities , it could be you lie , hurting someone ,lust , theft etc .. God never condenmed anyone ... Jesus didn't condemned Peter for lying rather blessed him , God didn't condemned Noah for drunkardness , . God didn't condemned DAVID for murdering , .. God will not condenmed these activities or so you called it sin ..God comdemned Spiritual adultery , idolators, killing and stealing God's words and his truth , abandoning God for other gods or for yourself ...it's all about Spiritual sins ... Your flesh is sinful in nature.. and hence God didn't condenmed your Spiritual body neither judged your physical body because Jesus had redempt alll with his blood .. You are called perfect though you are not. All his grace and love for mankind , but if you think you will correct your life by your good works . Then you have defile and sins against God . You defile his works , love and free grace for all are his works , not yours ... All credit and praises to God ,.
Abraham Lincoln :" I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom, and that of all about me seemed insufficient for the day."
Whether he changes his mind or not this in itself clearly shows us that he is still omniscient and omnipotent (because he knows every outcome, and he has full control over every outcome) . And he always finds a way around sinful man's shortcomings. Not that it catches him off guard because it doesn't, but more like he is saying "I'm the Developer of this Creation and will add and subtract anything I decide". After all he is God, and we really have no right arguing against his grand plan Concerning The World nor are we born to know everything. And there is the beauty, even if we don't know everything, we can be sure that We have a God who does.
Unrelated to the video, but man the folks at Southern Seminary have glorious beards. My fave is Peter Gentry 😂
😄😂
Righteous beards indeed.
Secrets of ages is properly taught by Neville Goddard if you want to wake up.
Stop it now, right now..😂🤣...I noticed that too...how funny...but absolutely expected with these savvy brains...
The Greybeards.
From time to time the same thing happens with my children. It appears to them I've changed my mind when in fact it was just part of the plan or lesson all along.
Brilliant😃👍
Exactly!
Or you did actually just change your mind.
@@JonathanGrandt No, I think he's right. Especially if you're trying to get them to tidy up before you reward them with something. You tell them, no, because their room is still dirty, then they go and tidy it up, then you go back and see that they have tidied it up, and then you tell them yes. I don't know if it's a good example, but that's the type of idea Clay is getting at, and I think it's a good explanation, especially with God and Moses.
So, you’ve never changed your mind based on the behavior and decisions of your children? Being able to do that is the essence of good parenting.
Thank you for this very precise clarification, very deep but clear for a mind that can get confused, but also very passionate about showing the practical implications of this truth for the day-to-day life of real Christians, with difficulties and sufferings. These videos of this ministry are a blessing. God bless you.
I don't know if one could say he changed his mind, but the story of Noah is a good example of him perhaps having a change of heart.
Abraham believed God and it was...
Nope, it just seems like to us because we don't know His secret plan. But He has planned everything from the beggining, including the "changes" that appear to us as changes but are actually perfectly coherent with the original plan.
@@ashley_brown6106 So you are telling me that while the Bible stating numerous times God changing His mind in reality is the opposite?
God changing His plan doesnt make His new plan is lesser perfect. God can have millions DIFFERENT plans which are still perfect.
God is all-powerful after all.
@@dimitartodorov4826 "For I am the LORD, I change not, therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed." - Malachi 3:6
"Every good and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness [variation] nor shadow of turning." - James 1:17
@@fireflames3639 First of all, are you aware that there are like 10+ verses in the Bible where God repents?
If 4 verses say something opposite of 12 verses wouldn't be wiser to interpret the 4 verses by what the 12 say instead of doing to opposite?
Second, yes these verses say that God doesn't change. God's character won't ever change, He will be always holy, righteous, faithfull, merciful, all-benevolent etc.
That doesn't mean unchangable in any respect.
God going for angry to not angry is a type change.
The hypostatic union is change since the Word wasn't eternaly incarnated in human and in union with it.
God going from not creating to creating is a type of change. The world didn't existed eternally, so God wasn't eterally creating the world.
God thinking is a change, since the procces of thinking requires change of thoughts.
So God actually repenting aka changing His mind is in line with everything the Bible states about God.
Great explanation. Thanks Southern!
Edit: That refrain you quoted from your father brought tears to my eyes.
Maybe, but what did you think of the content? When preachers start quoting antiquities not accessible to God's workers, I am immediately suspicious. Even the Catholics nowadays give their adherents the Bible and liturgy in their own language. These preachers look for an alternative way to deny this right. These ponts were probably considered by translators, who wrote for ordinary people, not scholars. Never tell them which translation you are using; it makes you vulnerable to fact-checking.
@@douglaidlaw740 I don't understand what you're saying.
Yes, he does, in the sense that he changes his attitude when people change their behavior. For example, when God sent a judgment message to the people of ancient Israel, he said: “Perhaps they will listen and each one will turn back from his evil way, and I will change my mind concerning the calamity that I intend to bring on them because of their evil deeds.”-Jeremiah 26:3.
Many Bible translations render this verse as saying that God would “repent” over the intended calamity, which could be understood to mean that he had made a mistake. However, the original Hebrew word can mean “change of mind or intention.” One scholar wrote: “A change in man’s conduct brings about a change in God’s judgment.”
Of course, just because God can change his mind does not mean that he must change it. Consider some situations where the Bible says that God has not changed his mind:
God did not allow Balak to make Him change His mind and curse the nation of Israel.-Numbers 23:18-20.
Once King Saul of Israel became firmly set in badness, God did not change his mind about rejecting him as king.-1 Samuel 15:28, 29.
God will fulfill his promise to make his Son a priest forever. God will not change His mind.-Psalm 110:4.
Doesn’t the Bible say that God never changes?
Yes, the Bible records God as saying: “I am Jehovah; I do not change.” (Malachi 3:6) Similarly, the Bible says that God “does not vary or change like the shifting shadows.” (James 1:17) This, however, does not contradict what the Bible says about God changing his mind. God is unchangeable in that his personality and standards of love and justice never alter. (Deuteronomy 32:4; 1 John 4:8) Still, he can give different instructions to people at different times. For instance, God gave opposite instructions to King David for fighting two consecutive battles, yet both methods succeeded.-2 Samuel 5:18-25.
Is God sorry that he created humans?
No, although he does regret that most people ignore or reject him. Describing conditions before the global Flood of Noah’s day, the Bible says: “Jehovah regretted that he had made men on the earth, and his heart was saddened.” (Genesis 6:6) In this verse, the word “regretted” comes from the Hebrew word that can mean “change of mind.” God changed his mind about most of the people who lived before the Flood because they had become wicked. (Genesis 6:5, 11) Even though he was saddened that they chose to follow a bad course, he did not change his attitude toward the entire human race. In fact, he preserved mankind through the Flood by means of Noah and his family.-Genesis 8:21; 2 Peter 2:5, 9.
So God is eternally miserable? No. He is not sitting in heaven constantly bombarded with sorrow over the 10 billion sins committed per second. God is not worrying. His wrath is stored up and ready to be outpoured according to His plan on the last day.
Couldn’t be more thankful for this man of God’s clarity in writing and studious undertaking on this subject. EDF is true.
Numbers 23:19
God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
One of my favorite lecturer. He once visited us in Redeemer Church of Dubai and thought the very first lecture (Systemic Theology) when the Dubai School of Theology started. Thanks Dr. Bruce Ware.
Where is Redeemer church?
Thank you sir for this explanations. I just stumbled on this channel and been hooked up on the videos. Explanations are great and staight forward.
Where do we draw the line then? Sometimes (actually most of the time) we have to (or tend to) interpret the Bible literally, but when literal interpretation is unfavorable then we have to interpret the Bible differently (contextualize). Isn't that a bit "all things to all men"-approach?
You can interpret the Bible any way you want. That is true. But there are ultimately two camps of thought. You can join the camp of Christians who pretend that their theology is purely scriptural and excludes philosophy, logic and science, (because these tools show that their theology results in a monstrously contradictory and morally disgusting worldview) - Or you can join the other club of Christians that know common sense is required to interpret scripture in order to construct a rational theology that makes sense. The first club will be riddles with logical and moral issues, and the second a lot less so (but you'll probably be labelled a heretic).
Take the theology of God's strict determinism of all events.
This implies that to him, we are essentially static objects, or programmable robots who never make any free decisions, and he planned that the majority of us will be tortured for trillions and trillions of years - but also loves us and expects to have a relationship with us.
The second knows that strict determinism contradicts the concept of love and relationship, and so refuses to accept it - not necessarily replacing it with another theory but simply holding to the fact that God gave us conscious will and we will perhaps never know the intricacies of time, causality and eternity because of our tiny 3D ant brains.
Good luck choosing!
God can do has he pleases we are all his property to do to whom whatever he chooses let’s rejoice and praise him who is our loving and faithful God.
To God be the Glory
if God does not know in advance what going to happen then how did he know me in my mother womb, some people are to smart for their own Good, God help us
Great video! This is such wonderful teaching on God's true omniscience and understanding well beyond what we can even convey effectively.
Why did God bring the animals before Adam? The answer is on the first page.
Yes God changes His mind. It’s All in the scriptures. Changing your mind and telling a lie are two different things. Just because God changes His mind does not make Him a liar, it makes Him a merciful loving God. Swearing to king David that his descendant would sit on his thrown forever is a promise God could never change.
The one thing God can not do is learn. He is all knowing so it is impossible for him to change his mind. .
After the flood, He decided never to kill off humanity, as he did.
He gave his word by putting the sign of the rainbow, in the sky.
Not to kill with water. He tricked us. We will be destroyed when He comes back!!!
@@allpraisestothemosthigh4671 He didn't trick humans. He said he'd never destroy man as he did {with a flood}. He does not EVER change his mind about sin... You sin, you die!!! The second time man gets globally destroyed will be by fire... Due to sinning. It's quite simple.
I don’t think that should be interpreted as God realizing what he’s done after the fact and saying “oh shit I probably shouldn’t do that again.” He was letting Noah know that this will be the only time where he uses water as a means of ultimate punishment to the sinful world. Indeed water is now used as a sign of cleansing the sin and entering new life in Christ in the context of baptism.
Right...so rainbows never occurred before this time? Unlikely. Common as nails. Always have been. Might as well ad a pot of gold at the end to complete the fantasy.
@@philipfarnam6013 never rained before that time
Excellent understanding and articulate description of the Lord’s attributes. I would encourage everyone to seek to know God through intuitive knowledge as the highest form of relationship rather than through the limited “thinking mind” because that is always filled with doubt; whereas the “knowing mind” is intuition which is the knower of the truth.
JFairhart
No, the best way to know God is through his Word, as per Samuel the prophet. When you rely too heavily on human intuition you are on dangerous ground. So often people intuit errant things. Can God speak to a person that way? Yes he can if he wants, but don’t look to it as your primary source. Read psalm 119 re what David said - Gods Word is a light to our feet and a lamp to our path
Scuba Guy - God’s word is the best way to “renew” the “thinking mind.” The function of the mind is to produce thought after thought and often unassociated thoughts and certainly negative ones as well. What to do? How to discipline such a mind? The Bible suggests meditating on the word day and night to renew such a mind. Very good. Now, what? Is that all there is? Jesus also tells us walking in the spirit, praying in the spirit, following his teachings (there is another good reason to read the word) is being in a relationship with him. So, “spirit” is how the Holy Spirit is in relationship to us, by counseling to “man’s spirit.” If you ignore “spirit” because you don’t trust your ability to recognize it, then it is not developed. Here is a practical example: How many times do you ignore your intuition when it tells you something? How many times do you tell yourself, “Oh, I knew that was going to happen but I ignored my intuition.?” The truth is the Holy Spirit once it dwells within your heart is advising you every moment. What in us resists? What in us rebels to the truth? The best way I have found to distinguish and recognize Holy Spirit is that information will spontaneously arise with a feeling of “knowing it” and more importantly my thinking mind was making no attempt to be involved. If I have doubts about what to do, I simply wait until it is intuitively obvious what to do. As long as my mind is trying to “think it through” I know I don’t have an answer yet. What’s interesting is once you begin to write your questions down and not force an answer, in time the “spontaneous answer” reveals itself very naturally. As though you made no effort to figure it out yourself. Also, an example of telling someone else your question often you get an intuitive answer as you are talking about it especially if it’s someone who cares about your wellbeing. This sharing is what I have found to be true in my life. Everyone has his or her own journey and temperament type and what works varies by individuals. The Good News is that there is a paradigm that works very well for each temperament type.
You can get to know God personally by learning about him and taking steps to please him. God will then “draw close to you.” (James 4:8) The Bible assures us that “he is not far off from each one of us.”-Acts 17:27.
Steps to knowing God
Read the Bible
What the Bible says: “All Scripture is inspired of God.”-2 Timothy 3:16.
Meaning: God is the Author of the Bible. He put his thoughts into the minds of the Bible writers. By means of this unique book, God has revealed his will for us. He has also revealed facets of his personality, including his love, justice, and mercy.-Exodus 34:6; Deuteronomy 32:4.
What you can do: Read the Bible daily. (Joshua 1:8) Reflect on what you read, asking yourself: ‘What does this teach me about God as a Person?’-Psalm 77:12.
As an example, read Jeremiah 29:11, and then ask yourself: ‘What does God want for me-peace or calamity? Is he a vengeful God, or does he want me to have a good future?’
Observe creation
What the Bible says: “[God’s] invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world’s creation onward, because they are perceived by the things made.”-Romans 1:20.
Meaning: God’s physical creations reveal aspects of his personality, just as a work of art can reveal much about the artist or a complex machine can say much about the inventor. To illustrate, the capacity and complexity of the human brain reveal God’s wisdom, and the controlled energy in the sun and other stars demonstrates his power.-Psalm 104:24; Isaiah 40:26.
What you can do: Take time to observe and learn about our natural world. As you do, ask yourself, ‘What do the amazing designs manifest in nature reveal about God?’ * Of course, there are many things that nature cannot tell us about our Creator. That is why he gave us the Bible.
Use God’s name
What the Bible says: “I will protect him because he knows my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him.”-Psalm 91:14, 15.
Meaning: God, whose name is Jehovah, gives special attention to those who know his name and use it respectfully. * (Psalm 83:18; Malachi 3:16) By telling us his personal name, God has introduced himself to us. “I am Jehovah. That is my name,” he says.-Isaiah 42:8.
What you can do: Use Jehovah’s name when referring to him.
Talk to Jehovah in prayer
What the Bible says: “Jehovah is near to all those calling on him.”-Psalm 145:18.
Meaning: Jehovah draws close to those who pray to him in faith. Prayer is an aspect of worship that shows our deep respect for God.
What you can do: Pray to God often. (1 Thessalonians 5:17) Tell him your concerns and how you feel.-Psalm 62:8. *
Build faith in God
What the Bible says: “Without faith it is impossible to please God well.”-Hebrews 11:6.
Meaning: To draw close to God, we must have faith in him. In the Bible, having faith means more than simply believing that God exists. It also means having complete trust in him, including his promises and standards. Trust is crucial to a good relationship.
What you can do: Genuine faith is based on knowledge. (Romans 10:17) So study the Bible and prove to yourself that you can trust God and his advice. Jehovah’s Witnesses would be happy to study the Bible with you. *
Do what pleases God
What the Bible says: “This is what the love of God means, that we observe his commandments.”-1 John 5:3.
Meaning: Jehovah is close to those who show their love for him by doing their best to obey his commandments.
What you can do: As you study the Bible, note what God likes and dislikes. Ask yourself, ‘What adjustments can I make in order to please my Creator?’-1 Thessalonians 4:1.
Experience God’s care by applying his advice
What the Bible says: “By experience you will see that [God] is good.”-Psalm 34:8, The Bible in Basic English.
Meaning: God invites you to see for yourself how good he is. When you experience his love and support, you will want to draw close to him.
What you can do: As you read the Bible, apply God’s advice and experience the benefits this brings. (Isaiah 48:17, 18) Also observe real-life examples of individuals who, with God’s help, overcame challenges, improved their lives and the lives of their families, and found true happiness.
Misconceptions about knowing God
Misconception: God is too powerful and important to want to be close to us.
Fact: Even though God is the most powerful and important Being in all existence, he invites us to draw close to him. The Bible contains many examples of men and women who became his close friends.-Acts 13:22; James 2:23.
Misconception: We cannot know God because he is a mystery.
Fact: Some things about God are difficult to comprehend, such as his being an invisible Spirit. Still, we can get to know God. In fact, the Bible says that we need to know him in order to gain everlasting life. (John 17:3) In terms we can understand, the Bible tells us about our Creator, revealing his personality, his purpose for mankind and for the earth, and his standards. (Isaiah 45:18, 19; 1 Timothy 2:4) And as mentioned, the Bible also reveals God’s name. (Psalm 83:18) We can thus not only know God but also draw close to him.-James 4:8.
This is such a wonderful lesson on God's character. Thank you!
Lord God Almighty, of Infinite Mercy . the same, the past, the present, the future, without beginning or without end, from everlasting to everlasting, forever and ever . Amen
He does know in advance but he allows interaction such as when he says to put Him in Remembrance,.. we KNOW He ALREADY KNOWS what you might put Him in Remembrance of, but puts the onus on us to recite, for instance, that He remember the Covenant with Abraham, to sway His Judgement,.. it has nothing to do with Him knowing, .it has everything to do with Him allowing interaction where our prayer CAN and DOES change outcomes, this world is not hardwired the way it's to be, but has latitude for Prayer which is why we CAN Hope,.. And when Justice is seen, we'll see many things that could have been vastly different had we had Faith and Prayed our Hopes through His Son,..,...
God’s unlikeness to human beings is asserted in Bible:
God does not sleep (Ps. 121:4); he is not a human being that he should lie or change his mind (Num. 23:19; 1 Sam. 15:29). Amen
Thank you for these short, helpful videos.
2 Now Abraham said of Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah.
3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, “Indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is [a]a man’s wife.”
4 But Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, “Lord, will You slay a righteous nation also? 5 Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she, even she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the [b]integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this.”
6 And God said to him in a dream, “Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her. 7 Now therefore, restore the man’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours.”
Indeed , rightly said God knows from end to the beginning.
That was the reason why God first created hell and then heaven.
Then He created human.
As said God when it comes for a judgement, He never diaappoints the righteous.
You are a true believer, may God bless you.
Amen.
Fearing God today is no guarantee that one will fear Him 15 years in the future. God knew that Abraham feared Him prior to Isaac’s birth. So why did He test Abraham 15 years later? Could it be that Abraham, over that 15 year period, acted in ways that showed that he didn’t fear God? When Abraham was obedient to God & about to sacrifice Isaac, God got his confirmation that Abraham, in fact, still feared Him and then He said “now I know…”. At least this is how I understand that story. Peace and blessings to you all.
It wasn’t confirmation that God needed, it might have been confirmation that Abraham needed. Just like God knew where Adam was in the garden, but He asks Adam where he is at… not so God could find him, but so Adam could realize where he was at - naked, afraid, hiding from God.
Thank you for the concise, detailed explanation.
For I the Lord do not change (Malachi 3:6). God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? (Numbers 23:19)
Part of his talk reminded me of teaching a class once on Gen.22 & I commented that we don't know how old Isaac was at the time (he's old enough to carry the wood for the sacrifice, so he's not a pup, yeh?). A brother said, "Well, we know he's not a teenager, because then his father couldn't really consider offering him up as a 'sacrifice' ". Cracked everybody up!
Why should we fear God when constantly told do not be afraid? I grew up with a father that ruled through fear and that just unsettles me to the core.
He does change his mind----Scripture attests to it....Jesus did it with the Syrophoenician women---Father God did it with Moses (was going to kill the people but Moses intervened)--he was going to destroy Ninivah but he changed his mind---He created man and said it was good---then later on God said he was sorry for creating man.......
Here is proof that God knows it all NLT, Ps. 139:16 NLT Eccl. 6:10 Lamentation CSB. 3:37 Amos 3:6
these are clear scriptures, and there are so many more, lets just study His word. The only schools that I've gone to were for computers, and the school of kneeology in prayer for 20 plus years. Thanks Professor great video...
Doesn’t the notion of God understanding the future in its entirety imply we live in a pre determined state which contradicts having any free will?
Fantastic explanation.. Exactly the way The Bible presents The Omniscience of GOD. Thanks
Great and insightful video. God bless your team.
Beings that God has changed His mind countless times in scripture, I would suppose so...However what doesn't change about God is His principles......
Nope, it just seems like to us because we don't know His secret plan. But He has planned everything from the beggining, including the "changes" that appear to us as changes but are actually perfectly coherent with the original plan.
@@ashley_brown6106 he did change his mind when he actually conversed with old testament figures. He knew what they would request in advance and in the end he got his way. In Gomorrah he wanted to destroy the city and ended up negociating its destruction. Once it was agreed that there were none worth saving he let Abraham and his family leave and destroyed the city after they left. He understood the mind of man and he had to relate to them on their level.
Sounds like god changed his mind so often that he forgot what his plan was altogether?😞⁉
The passage I was hoping Dr. Ware would address was Exodus 32:14, where God has told Moses that because of the obstinate behavior of the people, He would destroy them and make a nation of Moses’s descendants. Moses then makes his appeal to God and verse 14 says, “So the LORD changed His mind about the harm which He said He would do to His people,” (NASB). I don’t believe this passage supports the idea that God “learns” something, but, what I’m left with is either Moses talked God into a better plan (God's original), or God never actually intended to do what He said He would do. Neither option is acceptable to me.
Amen! Thank you for sharing the truth!
God is allknowing Amen
Careful here.
There are cases where God has explicitly stated something and then "appeared" to change His mind. I don't think there is anyway around it. I don't know what Open Theism is, but know what scripture teaches. The case he gives is with respect to a given event - the tearing of the kingdom from Saul. That is the context where Samuel is removing any doubt from Saul that this would occur - even some early manuscripts use the word relent instead of repent. Indeed even Saul's humility before the Lord did not change this. This is the same issue that Calvinism faces; taking a specific context and applying it generally.
I think the proper usage of the Hebrew word nachem is that of not changing His mind but being sorry for what He has done. God is generally not sorry for what He does because His judgments are just. But again context is important.
A better explanation is this: When God tells us something He plans to do He is being completely honest; that it is His intent. Yet God will not always do what He say to whom he says based on man's actions, at least at an individual level. People receive the promises of God through faith (Hebrews 11:33). No faith, no promise realized. If so God would know that He would change His mind. Only in this way do we avoid the deceptive nature of the the presented argument. This seems more consistent with scripture.
@Ben Jones Thanks i updated (because i had a wording error in there), however the Hebrew word naham (change his mind) still underlies the passage and is more often related to being sorry. But even here we have to be careful because of "And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them" Genesis 6:6-7. The problem is that we can see that God does not do things that He said He would for certain people, but it is not God's truthfulness at stake, but rather man's refusal to remain faithful and realize those promises. The issue is not God's truthfulness for He is always true, but rather whether man has the faith, at an individual level, to receive those promises. Let me know if you want other examples.
@Ben Jones Ben, that is foreknowledge and we agree. But there are two places where the terms you use can get us in trouble. First is sovereign. What does that mean to you? It means different things to different people and the way you use it above is not correct. Second, lie. God does not lie. That does not mean he always does for a person what He said he would. Let me know if you need examples from scripture. The problem occurs because people make the false assumption that a promise of God will always be realized by those given to. Let me give you two examples. First if i promise to take you to the fair this weekend if you take out the trash, there are conditions attached to that. But even if i just promise to take you to the fair it is still conditional because it assumes you will not do something crazy. So lets say i promise to take you to the fair this weekend but you kill yourself before i can fulfill my promise. Did i lie because i did not actually take you to the fair? No you did not realize the conditions of the promise. Did i change my mind because i did not take you to the fair? No i fully intended to. This is what we see in scripture and is consistent with God's sovereignty.
@Ben Jones Show me in scripture where the ideas of permissive or decreed wills is. In fact humans have assigned as many as five different wills to God. People use the word permissive will to suggest evil is still in His will. When someone murders another, it is NOT in His will. The fact that He is sovereign does not change this. He may allow it, but that does not mean He willed it in any way. We can see this easily in scripture by God telling us specifically what His will is only to have man not do it. God permits evil that does not further His cause. God is sovereign but He does not always use His omnipotence. We agree completely that God does allow things and if He chose, could intervene. We also agree that He is holy and is not in anyway responsible for sin. But I would offer that if you use the term permissive will as Calvinists do (ex. James White), it can be claimed that God is responsible for sin because it is within His will, He could prevent it, and it brings glory to Him. I think you would have a hard time scripturally justifying that.
@Ben Jones First, i do not subscribe to the "God never violates free will idea." Nebuchadnezzar is another example of where God overrode a person's free will. There are many people who would claim that God overrode the will of people in scripture but it does not actually say this in many cases. But the examples of where he does are limited and given the amount of sin in the world, in times past and present, including his elect, we can see that most of the time God does NOT restrain human will. He will lead. We can choose to follow. In fact in the example you quote, God even tells Abimelech that Abimelech was trying to do what was right (integrity of heart). Your answers: First i assume when you say commandment, you mean one of the 10 commandments as opposed to other commands. Yes there is a commandment not to murder. It is His will. Not his decreed or permissive will, just His will. Again these are human terms, not what scripture teaches. it should be noted that God has used men to visit vengeance and wrath on people using other people. Yes God's decreed (that is what he decrees and i am only using this word because you asked a direct question here using that term) will is His only will scripturally; it is what He desires and in some cases will enforce. Remember what the Hebrew word rason (will) means: desire, pleasure. Again, there are men who will say that God has two or more wills. Yes there is a commandment that says that telling a lie is a sin. Thou shall not bear false witness. But there are other non-10 commandment teachings that also indicate that lying is a sin.
@Ben Jones These do not make the point i think. In fact, they further complicate the issue. Just look at the lexical construction. If we accept God's will as that which God desires then decreed will is: God decrees what he desires. But then permissive will is: God permits what He desires. Since we lump sin under His permissive will, we can only conclude one thing logically - God permits His desire for sin. This is where i depart with the Calvinists who in effect, make God the first cause of sin. Calvin himself said men can only sin by divine decree (I.18). But God does NOT desire sin in any way; it is a violation of His character for there is no darkness in Him. I acknowledge that Jesus is a separate case and that was going to be completed as one of God's purposes. But God Himself tells us that in advance. Also there are other purposes of God which will not be halted. But a being with foreknowledge can sidestep the free will of men in many, many ways and with omnipotence can enforce His will if the need be. However in the end, God has one will and He has been kind enough to tell us what is within His will, its just that the one will is not always done.
I didn't really hear an explanation on God relenting making Saul king to mean something other than regretting a decision. Can someone help me understand otherwise?
In regard to that Genesis 22 passage, the Peshitta translates it as "Now I have made known" as in God has proved to the world Abraham's faithfulness.
What he (and so many others) fail to mention is that nearly all the times when God describes the future, He is describing things that HE will be doing. That does not involve foreknowledge. It just means that if God wills something to be done--and pledges that it will be--then it will come about. That explains most (not all) of the instances in Scripture where God predicts the future.
I will add something: If God knows everything that He is ever going to do (into infinity), then God is no longer free. God cannot do other than what He knows He is going to do. That's, eh....a bit of a problem. Forget the fact that it's just another place where we doubt what the biblical authors believed. "Yeah, they thought this . . . but we know better."
@Brian Rossiter aren’t you applying the tiny, grasping, finite way in which man conceptualizes life and existence onto God? God made us from dirt. We are mudmen to whom God loaned a spark.
The book of Job is a real humbler.
@@joewright9879 Rhetoric with no substantive argument. Cool.
it is a simple yet profound rules of biblical interpretation to let the clearest verses shed light on the unclear verses. Either the Bible is contradictory, in which case it is untrue and worthless, or else we need to use reason to interpret the apparent paradoxes in such a way that the Bible shows itself not to be contradictory.
This professor has done a good job of that. He is not coming up with something new; he is simply teaching what the church (and O.T. Judaism) has always taught and believed.
When people come up with "new" theologies, like Open Theism, the New Perspective on Paul, or the Emerging Church, the first thing we should do is put the burden of proof on them. They are flying in the face of what biblical scholars and theologians have taught for centuries; so if they can't come up with an iron-clad argument that shows conclusively that the church has been in error for 2000 years, then they need to be disbelieved.
Superposition allows for this
Hi BatMite19: what is the new perspective on Paul?
@@stevecoyle1 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Perspective_on_Paul
@@BatMite19 Thanks. That was enlightening.
God clearly reveals that he changes his mind.
Your statement of use the clear to interpret what is not clear seems reasonable. But then it depends on which side you deem clear and which you deem unclear.
Seems to just be a way to arrive at ones already accepted comfortable position.
Jonah knew God would be gracious and Jonah also knew that there was a chance that Nineveh would repent and so therefore he didn’t want to go. he did not know that Nineveh would repent he simply didn’t want to give that a chance
It’s simple. He allows us to petition with him and make changes from our perspective so we can grow in relationship with him.
@John Harris see my response and see if that gives some light on it or at least a partial understanding
I've seen Saving Private Ryan half a dozen times, I know exactly what's going to happen to Vin Diesel...I still cry everytime...
Exodus 32 says that Moses intervened and convinced God not to destroy the people, even though they were disobedient, corrupt, stubborn, and rebellious: "Then the Lord relented and did not bring upon the people the disaster he had threatened."
(Exodus 32:14)
What is there than to say about when He "grieved that he created man?"
If God didn’t change His mind regarding Nineveh, was their threat of judgment empty? God does not lie. That less-controversial (I think) fact suggests that He is willing to follow through with a threat of judgment even though He knows He will answer a cry for mercy. It makes sense to me that God can change His mind while also being omniscient. Why shouldn’t God be able to change His mind even when He knows He will do so? The idea that we may be unable to do so if we were all-knowing is no reason because God does not fit in our box and because we are not omniscient.
Yes we can have confidence that God is God but do we really believe we have Him all figured out when He speaks or have complete confidence in what He speaks.which presents the challenge of excepting everything He says and not using one part to nullify another.
Like with Nicodemus, I believe we shouldn't get confused with the language present. There's a deeper understanding that you can't get if you're going to get hung up on if regret is possible with God. Regret doesn't just come about once future knowledge is obtained, you can regret something while having future knowledge of the outcome. Now, understanding the reason God went on with decisions He knew He would regret is what needs to be pondered. There's a reason for everything. Even for the supposed unfruitful decision. Without Isreal seeing how much of a terrible king Saul would turn out, they might have never learned to understand why David was so much better, a man after God's own heart.
What a humble and also brilliant explanation!❤
That's why the fall from Grace is impossible .. you see time as a single object if you stand outside it . Eternal beings can't be surprised unless they answer to a larger clock . Is God's will alone an entirely different type of body?
This is still very hard to wrap your head around. Because if you say God is all knowing even those times where he gives people the free choice to make a decision that moves to part 2 of plan A as you say. God would have already knew that would have happened
He is as a Father is, we are as children are - His expectation for us was and is great.. it was and is a learning process.. there is uncertainty.. we have free will.. circumstances change.. The Rules and Laws of The Father do not, however Jesus Christ the Son came about to show us Just Who our Heavenly Father really is... infinitely Righteous, Loving, Just, Merciful. The Epitome of Perfect.. something we can only ever strive for.. All Glory to God, he who is most high - Creator of Heaven and Earth... May he be Swift and Merciful in his Righteous Judgement.. (this is my humble opinion, i will always remain teachable.)
Yes, because of His mercy,during king David censos
The question was not regarding if God is omniscient. Why does God’s foreknowledge preclude His ability to change His mind? How can we say He is unable to change His mind based on our finite and frail logic regarding what it’s like to be omniscient? If God’s omniscience requires that His mind is unchangeable, does that not seal all of our individual fates and make Him implacable?
- the story of Adam and Eve might change the future if their choices were different than what we know it.
- the bad people in Noh time if they were repented they might avoid the great flood.
- this be applied to all the Biblical stories; Lot and Sodom and Gomarra's fate. Moses hitting twice the rock. King David life errors. etc
- every humans and single individual's choices have the potential and impact to change the future.
- every positive prayer that has a response can change the future.
- free will and prayer can make longer or shorter the age of the world, infact we pray saying Maranatha to end quickly the suffering.
- God remains OMNISCIENT no matter of our free decisions and heard prayers. in fact the meaning of all prophecies written in The Bible, they happened in the future in the exact time and way they are described. God knows the end of the world.
@@zmeraldo507 I agree.
Isaiah 43:13 ESV / 1,376 helpful votes
Also henceforth I am he; there is none who can deliver from my hand; I work, and who can turn it back?”
the bible does not line up with our philosophical understanding of God's foreknowledge. therefore, the bible must not mean what it actually says...
Not a good way to do theology...
duguoqing84 To ignore the passages of scripture that speaks extensively of God’s decree and foreknowledge, is also not a good way fo doing theology...
@@carstenstampe not sure what your point is for all three main views recognises God's decrees and foreknowledge but differs on the extent and means.
Calvinism says that God foreknows only because he foreordain everything.
Armenianism says that God foreordains certain things but how he foreknows everything is a mystery
Open Theism says that God foreordains certain things and by his infinite wisdom is able to foreknow all possible outcomes. God has the perogative and sovereignty to change his mind concerning what that has not been decreed.
I'd rather think of God being the One who created man with a true free will, knowing ahead of time that our choices might not align with His purpose. Because he has contingencies based upon this, and being able to cause all things to work together for good, He can be a God of the possible as well as the actual. Neither choice by us in any situation baffles Him nor besmirches his character. He is not a wishy-washy Sovereign but clearly can deal with any variety of possibilities. He seemed to deal ok with Abraham's pleading to not destroy the Israelites and begin anew as well as seemingly do something different for Hezekiah regarding his announced imminent death. If/when He does change His mind because of human prayer, it doesn't show a weakness but rather a strength.
Bruce Ware brutally distorts 1 Sam 15. The text is clear. 15:10 says God regretted making Saul king because he didn’t fully carry out God’s commands. Therefore, God officially rejects Saul from being king ever again and instead looks for another king who will be better than Saul (15:26). Saul attempted to plead with Samuel that he may still hold on to his kingship (15:27 and Saul grasping for Samuel’s robe) but it was of no use , God had already decided to hand over the kingdom to someone else (David). THIS is what God would not change his mind about! God officially decided to dismiss Saul as king. No amount of pleading on Saul’s part would change God’s mind regarding this choice. His decision stands (15:28). Thus, God regrets that he made Saul king, but God will not change his mind about finding a new king. It’s that simple, folks. I am continually astonished as to how Calvinist professors can miss something so elementary in the text. The reality is, however, that calvinists are very uncomfortable with the idea of God regretting anything, because that means that human actions have the ability to emotionally affect God or causally influence God which inconveniently contradicts their pathetic doctrine of divine impassibility. Impassibility doesn’t come from the Bible, it’s a Greek philosophical and metaphysical concept originally derived from Plato and Aristotle who viewed god not as a loving personal creator who hears prayers and forgives sins, but a god who rather was a distant nonpersonal abstract rational principle. And yet, these Greek philosophical ideas such as permeated the church from the beginning and onward from Justin Martyr to Augustine, Boethius Peter Lombard, and Thomas Aquinas. The Reformers were all Thomists! By the way, ever wonder why most Christians believe God is atemporal (outside of time) yet the Bible never describes God as being such? (Psalm 90:2 won’t help you. All it says is that God has existed eternally. Existing eternally in time is not the same thing as atemporally. Please understand this!) Ever wonder why most Christians believe God created time yet the Bible nowhere says that God created time? Hmmm 🤔
Exactly! The Bible is full of instances where God is affected emotionally by things that humans do. He is grieved in his heart at humanities evil and regrets creating humanity (Gen 6:6-7), God is jealous and doesn't want his people worshipping other gods (Ex 20:5). God changes his mind to preserve his integrity amongst the other nations (Ex 32:9-14). God also changes his mind if the behavioral status of people on earth changes (Jer 18:7-11). God changed his mind about what kind of feces should be used to bake bread on (Ezek 4:12-15). God can have false expectations (Isa 5:2,4,7; Jer 3:7,19). God's spirit can be grieved (Eph 4:30). God is pleased with the smell of sacrifices (Gen 8:21), God gets angry, though slowly (Ex 34:6). Calvinists will say "oh no no! You see, none of these texts actually mean what they say. What God is "REALLY" doing is condescending himself to the level of human comprehension to communicate his truth and will in a time conditioned way." Umm, ok . So how is that any different than man making god in his own image?
I personally don't think our creator can change his mind like you and me. He already had plans for me and you even before we were formed in our mothers womb. He already knew how he would redeemed his chosen ones even before creation.
The example of Saul being stripped of kingship is because Jesus was supposed to be from the tribe of Judah. Which tribe was Saul from? Tribe of Benjamin.
Let's not try to outsmart our God's plan by saying he can change his mind. His plan for you and me and mankind were planned even before creation. Perfectly planned by our triune God!!
@@EAD1142 I respect your personal beliefs, but if you are a Reformed Christian, then it doesn't matter what you "personally believe". The text of 1 Sam 15 disagrees with the classical theistic doctrine of immutability, as do other texts in the Old Testament which either say that God changes his mind, or that he could change his mind given certain circumstances (1 Sam 15:10, Genesis 6:6-7, Exodus 32:14, Jonah 3:10, Jeremiah 18:1-11, Numbers 14:11-20, Ezek 4:12-15).
Good explanation. God is sovereign.
Also, the thing is, if God changes what he says he's going to do, knowing full well that he wasn't going to do that, that would make him a liar.
Judgment is constant!
But when the people look out for mercy, they will receive mercy!
It's either Judgment or mercy in every case.
That doesn't sound like changing of mind, but rather, having mercy on the guys who pursued after God's mercy.
Lastly, He also knows who would take advantage of Mercy and who won't take advantage of His mercy.
We are the only ones limited by time (chronos)... He lives in Eternity!
@@melchisson You didn't address my statement at all. If you said you were going to do something and didn't do it, there would only be 3 reasons why. You either forgot, you changed your mind or you lied. God CANNOT forget, so he only has two options. HE lies or he changes his mind. Saying you're going to do something when you know you are not going to do it is called deception and deception is lying.
Thank you professor, this was a serious question that troubled me..!!👌👌👌
For the matter of King Saul why is it written in the scripture as if he regrets or wish he hadn’t, if he knew how it would turn out. Same with Abraham, why put him through that if he knew all along that he feared him. Imagine on a human level which we are, a voice tells you to take up your beloved son to a temple for sacrifice. The torture, the mental anguish, the pain, the struggle as he ties his son on that temple raise the dagger knowing that he is about to kill his son only for god to say “Abraham stop stop now I know you love and fear me” it’s like you’ve been PUNKED if he already knew that Abraham had this love and fear for him? WHY?????
We have a universe that is ever expanding, possibly with new creations beyond our scope. Life on earth changes and evolves. We ourselves grow in character just as our bodies grow and age. Who's to say God does not constantly evolve as well? If we attribute God to infinity, would that also mean he expands and grows?
Some of these accounts are unsatisfying, the passages don't self define the discrepancy, and the truth is defined elsewhere.
I really enjoy the translations of original text because it's one of the few ways to qualify discrepancies. I just wish there were more tools to investigate with.
That word doesn't just mean to change your mind.
God speaks to people in ways we can understand especially the ones He's talking to. If He wouldn't do so, we would not understand a bit of it.
The hard thing for us today is to understand them. But of course, when we rely on His Spirit for interpretation, we will 'know'.
Great stuff! Gifted teacher and Godly man.
Someone once said, "Has it ever occurred to you that nothing ever occurs to God?"
it's not about whether or not God knows exactly what will take place. God knows EVERYTHING that could EVER take place, and He knows all future possibilities as if they ARE "the future". I don't personally care what you think this does to God's power. God is altogether more powerful and praiseworthy if He is able to leverage His wisdom in contingencies and strategy for different potential outcomes.
We are free creatures and so are God's enemies. Yet He alone is the sovereign guide who is responsible for judging and shaping the path that history will take.
Fancy seeing you here Tim 😂😁
@Fireking285 Ha! No kidding! This was an oldie but a goodie. :)
@TheOverlapLifewithTimBarber Ehh, it's not much of an answer tbh. Listening to You, Warren and Chris Fischer has been making me think on OT a lot lately. I'm not settled on it, but it's bugging me 😂.
My biggest issue with trying to find good answers against OT is primarily this "anthropomorphic" excuse. Like, is there a Bible verse that says mankind or scripture can only explain or understand God in anthropomorphic language? That the scripture doesn't RREEEAALLLYY mean what it says? If I started going through the Bible and started ripping out pages of scripture that contain an "anthropomorphism" how much of my Bible would be left?
If we are truly free to think and act, then God does not know with absolute certainty what we are gong to do in some situations. It is true that it says that God knows the end from the beginning, but is this an statement of knowing the future which has not happened or being able to bring the future circumstances to pass by God’s power to intervene in the affairs of men, the end result is the same. God shapes the present to become what He wants in the future. His knowledge of the present is inexhaustible so God know what this present knowledge shapes what tomorrow will be like. God can also influence His children to act so that His will is done since He can guide us by His Spirit.
He acknowledges that scripture often depicts God as changing his mind. So OT has clear biblical precedent.
OT is simply the proposition that the future is not exhaustively settled. It can be mostly settled and OT still true. Isa.46:10 speaks to that which He has determined/settled to God. Many other passages show that certain things are not settled.
God does not change his mind in the way we do as He is always true to His character. But being true to His character often requires changing course in response to what men do. Jeremiah 18:1-11 makes this very clear.
Critical but often missing in critiques of OT such as this one is how we understand time. If you're looking into OT, familiarize yourself with presentism vs eternalism. If you assume eternalism, OT is seen as an attack on God's omniscience. If you affirm presentism (as open theists do) then you can affirm both open Theism and God's omniscience.
He basically affirms exactly what open theists say at 12:15. :)
True, any understanding of God other than Open Theism is logically contradictory.
at this time i understand it like this:
- the story of Adam and Eve might -change the future -if their choices were different than what we know it.
- the bad people in Noh time if they were repented they might avoid the great flood.
- this be applied to all the Biblical stories; Lot and Sodom and Gomarra's fate. Moses hitting twice the rock. King David life errors. etc
- every humans and single individual's choices have the potential and impact to change the future.
- every positive prayer that has a response can change the future.
- free will and prayer can make longer or shorter the age of the world, infact we pray saying Maranatha to end quickly the suffering.
- God remains OMNISCIENT no matter of our free decisions and heard prayers. in fact the meaning of all prophecies written in The Bible, they happened in the future in the exact time and way they are described. God knows the end of the world.
I loved this, because this shows that the meaning of the same word is in accordance to what the context is in the verse. People use the word fulfill wrong just like he's saying about change. So if you place the meaning wrong in the verse you miss the actual truth of the verse. Matthew 5:17 is a prime example of what he is say when it comes to the word fulfill. People in Matthew 5:17 make the word fulfill means to destroy, abolish or get rid of something. But if you read the verse the way these people think it reads " Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets, I am not come to destroy but destroy " The word fulfill has like 5 different meanings in Greek, but as we see if Jesus would have said it the way I typed it with the word fulfill meaning to destroy it, the verse makes no sense. Jesus came to fulfill ( uphold) or to magnify the law to show us how we could keep it through love for our father in heaven just like he did. Paul said love is the fulfilling of the law not the end of it.
Galatians 2:16 "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified." The OT law is obsolete. Hebrews 8:13 "In that He says, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away." Has the New Covenant been established? Yes 2000 years ago. So the Old Covenant is obsolete. Now something that is obsolete isn't worthless, it is simply no longer needed or used.
@@benjones7218 James 2:14-26 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without [a]your works, and I will show you my faith by [b]my works. 19 You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe-and tremble! 20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is [c]dead? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? 22 Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made [d]perfect? 23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was [e]accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. 24 You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.
25 Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?
26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
Romans 2:13 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.
The works of the Law was to condemn us for our sin, we are under a new covenant my friend but if you read Dueteronomy 4 and 5 two different coveanants were made. The first was the Mosaic covenant the 613 levitical laws that pointed to Christ and the Second was the Ten Commandments. Hebrews 8:8-11 says
For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:
9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.
10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:
11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.
It's clear here that Paul is quoting from Jeremiah 31:31-34 because they say the exact same thing, The ten commandments covenant was now to be written on the heart of anyone who believe and accept Christ. See until love for God is completely fulfilled in your heart you can't love him or your neighbor like Christ did, which is why Paul says love is the fulfilling of the LAW. The difference between you and I are you see the commandments as a list of do's and don't!! I see them as a list of I will, and I won't!! One is legalism ( by the works of the law shall no man be justified ) and one is loyalty through love if the commandments are not in your heart then sin prevails over your life because you continue to yield to it, instead of doing what Paul also says in Philipians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.
The problem were not the commandments, Paul in Hebrews 8:8 says it was the people that fault was found with. Aything God creates is perfect including the Law, and since the temple on earth contained the Ark of the Covenant it says in Exodus it was a replica of the temple in heaven, if that is true then guess what's in the Ark in heaven? The ten commandments, God's personal and morale standard of his character that was lived out by Christ in human form. Did Jesus sin? Of course not, so if he didn't sin the law was made perfect in him as our example as of how the commandments affect your life, love for God and man, if the Lord is Lord of your life then the commandments are not greivioussome they are as the psalmist King David says " A delight " Your problem is you see the law as something that condems you, I see it as something that liberates me from sin and sets me free.
@@benjones7218 Also that word Justified or Justification in the Greek means to be unique and set apart, if we are no different through loyalty to God then we are no different from others in this world, the commandments seperate us from everyone else when they asbide in us.
@Ben Jones Your not grasping my point Ben, you don't keep the Law to be saved!! You fulfill it just as Christ did when you are saved!!
Saying the Law can't be fulfilled in ourselves as it was in Christ after repentance is saying the devil is strong enough to get you to sin, but Christ isn't strong enough to keep you from it!
Btw, what is sin? Paul and John both concure it is breaking the commandments of God. Without a standard to uphold there is no definition of sin.
By nailing the commandments to the cross you are saying there hasn't been a sinner since the cross.
Christ made the commandments full in his own life and ministry by full and complete submission of his will to his father's will and not his own out of love, this is why Paul says " Love is the fulfilling of the Law. "
Once we say there is no more standard to identify sin, like a mirror identifies a blemish on our face, we don't see our sin. Satan knows if he can get rid of the commandments we don't see our sin, if we don't see our sin we don't need Christ.
The commandments are only condemning to someone who hasn't fully submitted there life fully to Christ or has made complete restitution with him like a new convert, a new convert who accepts Christ has been convicted of his sin, see's his sin, ask for foregivenss and for Christ to come into his life. This is where Grace comes in.
Grace covers us with Christ's righteousness while we are working out our salvation through fear and trembling, while the standard of perfection is a sinless life like Christ, Grace covers us as we walk with the Lord trying to gain the victories of the sin in our life, and should we die without that perfect standard perfected in us it is the blood & Righteousness of Christ that covers us.
Is the standard of a Christian life to be like Christ himself? Yes!! Did Jesus through love fulfill all the commandments? Yes!! People should becareful bro when they say we can't be perfect as Christ was perfected, we can be perfected in that way through Christ Philipians 4:13. Once you say that you make the devil bigger than your God. That's like saying " Satan has the power to tempt us to sin, but Christ doesn't have the power to keep us from it.
Jonah did not believe God has exhaustive foreknowledge. This is demonstrated by Jonah's running from God. Jonah believed that if he ran that this running is not something God foresaw and that by running he could ensure that a course of events would remain CERTAIN if he disobeyed. The concept of timelessness as read INTO Scripture had not even been exposed to Hebrew writers because the concept came later with Parmenides.
Is Isaiah, God is not asserting His deity on knowing the future but upon being able to do that which He says He will do. The test is not what God sees, but on what He does.
It's weird when I pause the video and look up these verses. It is like the whole argument being made by Bruce Ware falls apart like the house of cards. 1 Samuel 15 he tries to show that God never changes His mind in verse 29. In context, God changes His mind on allowing Saul to become King, but will not change His mind on allowing him to continue to reign for the sake of Israel. If God planned out the end from the beginning and someone, like Saul doesn't want to play ball with God's plan, then God can change His mind on keeping Saul in power, but maintain his judgement for the sake of His ultimate purpose. To me, open theism can make perfect sense of this passage if you are willing to check all your preconceptions at the door. 🤷♂
So God created everything. Everything, he gave man the ability to change his mind. He's all powerful, and all knowing. Why would humans think he can't change his mind.
I am not sure where you get your information from but this what written in the scriptures Malachi 3:6 6 For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. There have more like this scriptures too where Yeshua say he never change
Many scriptures where God test man to see what is in his heart,God has given us free will to make our own choices.He will cause things to happen to test what we will do.God is not afraid not to know beforehand what our decisions will be.Few passages with words in caps reasoning God does not know how we will choose.
''Gen 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, LEST he PUT FORTH HIS hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
Gen 6:5 And GOD SAW that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
Gen 6:6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at HIS heart.
Gen 18:20 And the LORD said, Because the CRY of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous;
Gen 18:21 I will go down now, and SEE WHETHER they have done altogether ACCORDING to the CRY OF IT, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know.
Gen 11:4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
Gen 11:5 And the LORD came down to SEE the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.
Gen 11:6 And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.
Gen 11:7 Go to, let US go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.
Exo 16:4 Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may PROVE them, whether they WILL walk in my law, or ''
Therefore this your line of thinking states ones destiny. People have a predestination, heaven or hell. Doesn't matter what you do. Freewill is then not real because God already knows who's going where in the end. Freewill is no longer needed.
Regarding Nineveh repenting, we can assume that God brought about the repentance of the people, so He not only knew what would happen, He made it happen:
2Ch 30:11 However, some men of Asher, of Manasseh, and of Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem.
2Ch 30:12 The hand of God was also on Judah to give them one heart to do what the king and the princes commanded by the word of the LORD.
2Ti 2:25 . . . God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth,
2Ti 2:26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.
What about the man in the Old Testament that God said was going to die. That man prayed to God and God gave more years to his life.
I like the saying "Jesus is life, the rest is just details " His word is truth and all things were formed by it. All those details are for our sake. Look and hear why I did this thing. If it weren't relayed to us in this manor, we couldn't grasp the necessity of the action. I do however believe that God resents some things that have to be done for the better ending. Like spanking a child.
What about with the warning that Jonah gave Nineveh?
Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”
3 Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it. 4 Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” 5 The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.
6 When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust. 7 This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh:
“By the decree of the king and his nobles:
Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. 8 But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. 9 Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”
10 When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.
They repented so God relented ❤️
I have a question: the part where 2 Samuel says that God incited David to number the fighting men of Israel, and then in the Chronicles it says that Satan incited David to number the fighting men. Also, in 2 Kings it talks about how Asa did not remove the high places from Judah, but in Chronicles it says first that the high places were removed, and then at the end it says that the high places were not removed. Can we have a video on that please, unless it exists already?
2 Chronicles 7:14 If
my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and
pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I
hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
Can Pheroah be held responsible for his actions when God was the one hardening his heart?
One thing most people miss in Genesis 22:12 (“now I know…”) is that it was *the angel* speaking, not God. So of course the angel could learn things from man’s actions, but you can’t use this passage to prove that God learned anything.
The angel of the Lord.
As in the pre-incarnate Christ?
That "angel"?
Keep the faith🙏
at 12:13 this gentleman describes what Open theism actually is, and defends it.
It amazes me how people who hold to strong divine simplicity, or the pagan "unknowable God" seem incapable of considering the nuanced views of Open theism, and dynamic omnisciences.
God has changed his plan in my life... from that moment on i cannot trust anything fully
God bless you abundantly bro
PAK ADAM TV appreciates your work for the glory of God
So using this logic, how does current church doctrine agree with that of the Messiah?
Think ..
Meditate ..
Did the selfsame GOD of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob change or not?
Judging by current Christian doctrine, He did ..
I am currently searching for the truth of this matter and I cannot seem to find peace in Calvinism, Arminianism or Open Theism. Although I tend to think open theism is closer to the truth. The reason is that I feel that every one of these doctrines or viewpoints seems to have a flaw or many flaws. I think however that you can still fully trust in an open theist God. The reason is that in that case, yes He does not know what human actions will take place however He knows what the best and safest option is. If you ask for guidance and He gives the best option based on his infinite knowledge of the current situation and the possible futures and IF human action or chance were to hinder the option He recommended then He would take action so that the problem is averted.
Ill give an example. You reach a fork in the road and God knows that on the right road, a drunk person has started driving on the wrong lane and if u went there you would crash and die. So God tells you to go on the left road where everything is completely fine. However, a driver hits a pothole in the road and the driver loses control of the car and it is going to go on the opposite lane (and crash with you). In that case, God has promised you that taking the left road is safe so He remains faithful to his promise and controls the car to stay on the correct lane. Does it make sense? I think we can still trust God if he is "open" because He is still perfect and cannot lie. One way or another his promises will come true. The same obviously applies to Prophecies
It is similar to God asking Adam and Eve where they are at after they had sinned. It wasn't like God didn't know where they were. He knew but it was for their sake that He asks those questions and makes those statements.