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| God is pro-choice |
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Back in the day this used to really tick me off! What kind of a God would set down a bunch of do's and don't's and then make His children decide whether or not to follow the rules? What was God thinking when He put Adam and Eve in the garden and then told them not to eat from a certain tree and THEN just left them there to choose between obedience and disobedience? It's a loving God that allows us to choose, even when it's painful for Him to see some of our choices. When we make the choices – good or bad - we gain wisdom and understanding into God's ways, which leads to increased faith and confidence in Him, which should lead us into greater obedience.
Any good parent will tell you there are times – lots of times! – they have to let their children choose between right and wrong all on their own, even if the child chooses "wrong". Sure, there will still be consequences for wrong choices or disobedience; there always is. The cool thing we've got going for us as Christians is that God has promised He will make all things work together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28). It's a conditional promise, but it's still a promise and as long as we meet the conditions, it's our safety net. There's great peace and security in that!
I read a blog yesterday that was asking who is to blame for someone giving in to temptation: God, Satan, the person who orchestrated the temptation or the one being tempted? Ix-nay on it being God. Although God allows us to be tempted, James 1:13 says pointblank that God does not tempt anyone. The book of Job is an example of God allowing temptation with Satan as the tempter, and we can all come up with examples of where one person has offered temptation to another to entice them into doing wrong. So, who's to blame when someone gives in to temptation? The one being tempted. Our loving Father has promised to never give us more than we can handle and to always provide a way of escape so that we can endure it (1 Cor.10:13). But how we respond is still OUR choice, and our pro-choice God lets us decide. |
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| Another great one, Jen! When I give in to temptation, I am to blame, and no one else. Wow, what a concept! If that sounds tongue in cheek, it's because these days it seems people will do anything to shift the blame. Can you imagine someone standing before the Almighty trying that? BTW, since I am starring you (yet again) I'd love to get your thoughts on this (my own blog on Choice). ~mike |
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Kathy |
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May 16, 2007 at 11:58am |
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| Good blog, Jen, and an accurate reference to 1 Cor. 10:13, which is so often quoted outside its context of temptation. Keep on blogging! |
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WOW Jen, I like the way you presented this.
You know what??? I have to die daily to self to do what God wants me to do. I have to choose to deny self in order to grow in Christ. I sometimes wonder why God doesn't make our flesh obey His Spirit if we are already His children. And then I am reminded that we are not puppets or robots... We are His children! I realize that...hey, it takes obedience to live in the Spirit and obedience requires my choosing to do those thing that will bring me close to Him, even if I don't like it.
It is my most profound prayer that I choose His will and not mine.
Thank you Jen.
Lourdes |
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| That was a sneaky way to put down a great post. I just replied to another post and said the same thing - God gave us free will, and we must CHOOSE Him. Simple enough, but if He hadn't given us this gift, we would just be automatons (sp?) without choice. |
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