Okay, this is a very combustible subject and I'll try my best to unpack carefully. Free will is usually defined as the ability of an individual to make conscious decisions and this definition assumes that such individual is in full control of every decision he makes. So the concept of free will suggests that humans are in full control of their moral actions and as such are fully responsible for every action that they commit.

This concept of freewill feeds delicately into Christianity and Islam and it lubricates their machine of divine justice. According to these two religions, every believer of either religion, should conduct his life according to the objective moral values dictated and inspired by God, and if anyone isn't able to adhere to these laws and ordinances, such person is deserved of punishment. So essentially this framework of justice is validated by the belief in freewill; the belief that everyone is in full control of their actions. But does freewill exist? I don't think so and if can prove that it doesn't exist, then that's a big hole in the face of Christianity and Islam, and it just puts a big question mark on the claim of the so called infinite wisdom of their God.

I will elucidate below.

Read the post Buh don't understand what is expected if us to comment. Care to make d question direct?

Freewill only exist to the extent of obeying and working within the confines of laws contained in the Bible/Koran.

How free is your freewill when you can't question some things that are said to be sacrosanct?

Is anyone actually in full control of their thoughts and actions? Do we own the conscious choice to determine the kind of things we do? To the untrained mind, this question seems much more like asking him if he is alive. "Of course I am alive. Of course I am in full control of my thoughts and actions. Durrrrhh!!!" These are the kinds of replies you will get from almost anyone.

What most people fail to realize in their very quick and superficial examination of the concept of freewill is first that we are different. What this implies is that we all differ in our anatomical and physiological make up. What this invariably means is that we have different brains. And everyone would agree with me that the brain is the engine of thought, decision and action. If we all have different brains, that are wired differently, it means that our decision making processes carry out their functions differently. So, if A, B and C have different brains and different cognitive wirings, and each are asked to make a decision on a particular subject, it follows that there would be a prominent variance in the way A, B, and C would make this decision. Meaning that one of the three is more likely to make the best decision, and one of the three is more likely to make the worst decision. So bearing in mind that each of these individuals didn't choose their brains, do they bear full or any responsibility at all for making the good or bad decision?

Another area most people fail to consider when they evaluate the concept of free will is the variables that are in play in the life of an individual. Example of these variables include: The experiences of the individual and the environment of the individual, and the role these two play in shaping an individual's personality, triggering genetic predispositions and creating world views and ideologies, which in turn influences controllably, his actions. Admitting that who we are today and every "choice" we make as a result of who we are, is a product of a concatenation of experiences we had no control over, and these experiences shape our lives differently, nullifies the belief that we fully control over our actions. If we aren't in control of the experiences that shaped our lives, how then are we in control of the actions that proceed from them?

Using our hypothetical A, B and C, it's not unreasonable to say that if A, B and C are born with different personalities and predispositions, and grow up in different environments and have different experiences, that either of them is more likely to make a certain kind of good or bad decision or take a certain kind of good or bad action.

Finally, if we agree that the decision of whether or not to do or not to do something at a particular moment is modulated by prior influences that led up to that very moment, how then can we say that we have freewill? And how can an all wise God not know this? If he does know this, then how can divine justice systems be created around this knowledge? This is absurd.

There is a good analogy I drew up that perfectly illustrates this point. Imagine if two people are participating in a race, and one of the participants is placed 10 metres away from the finish line while the other is placed 1000 metres away from the finish line, and these two are asked to begin the race at the same time, and whosoever wins gets rewarded and whosoever loses get punished. This is the kind of justice system Christianity and Islam constructs around their flawed notion of freewill.

First, the decision to be a Christian or a Muslim is heavily influenced by factors that are not within the individual's control. Factors like geography for instance. It's more likely for a someone born in Enugu to become Christian than it is for someone born in Afghanistan. And it's more likely for someone who is born in Enugu to a strongly christian family to become a Christian, than it is for someone who is born to a secular family in Abuja. These variables matter.

Also, in abiding by moral codes, we forget the role personality plays in the kind of actions we commit or are predisposed to commit, bearing in mind that the makeup of personalities aren't our own doing. We are just lucky or unlucky to have them.

How then can we assert that every individual is solely responsible for every decision he makes? How can we say that certain people deserve eternal punishment for choosing to not belief in God and Jesus his son? How can we say that we are morally accountable for our actions and deserve perpetual, excruciating torment for these actions?

I am open to debate if anyone doesn't agree with me.

An2elect2:
Christianity does not teach free will to make divine decisions. It's not in the Bible and our fathers in the faith termed is as a damnable heresy.

Do not confuse the age of apostasy or mass error for true Christianity.

BTW, God is just and right to send everyone to their deserving place.

So what does true Christianity teach? And how do you reconcile your claim that Christianity doesn't teach freewill as a tool in making divine decisions and your assertion that God is just and right to send everyone to their deserving place? What's the criterion God uses to determine an individual's deserving place?

bolinjkezzy:
Read the post Buh don't understand what is expected if us to comment. Care to make d question direct?

I already expanded on my initial post.

Stewie101:


So what does true Christianity teach? And how do you reconcile your claim that Christianity doesn't teach freewill as a tool in making divine decisions and your assertion that God is just and right to send everyone to their deserving placed? What's the criterion God uses to determine an individual's deserving place?

The criterion is our sinful nature we inherited from Adam because of his disobedience.

Romans5:19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.



Psalm 51:2 I have been evil from the day I was born; from the time I was conceived, I have been sinful.

Ephesians 2:1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,

These are examples that show men are born dead in sin and incapable of doing good such as choosing God. This was as a result of the fall of our first parents.

If that's the case, it follows that all men deserve to perish in hell since their choice is always evil and their ways not good or up to God's righteous standard.

So if any man will be saved it has to be by something outside of himself

An2elect2:
The criterion is our sinful nature we inherited from Adam because of his disobedience.

Romans5:19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.



Psalm 51:2 I have been evil from the day I was born; from the time I was conceived, I have been sinful.

Ephesians 2:1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,

These are examples that show men are born dead in sin and incapable of doing good such as choosing God. This was as a result of the fall of our first parents.

If that's the case, it follows that all men deserve to perish in hell since their choice is always evil and their ways not good or up to God's righteous standard.

So if any man will be saved it has to be by something outside of himself

So do we have the freewill to choose to accept this salvation?

Free will is inherently paradoxical, though, and doubly so when dealing with a supposedly omniscient, omnipotent being like the ones theists do

If decisions are dictated by circumstances (circumstances being both internal and external for this matter; predispositions to certain behaviours as much as personal history, etc.), then you have no free will, as you were never in control of your circumstances. If they are dictated by nothing, they're random and arbitrary, meaning you have no say in the decision-making process and, again, no free will.

Likewise, an omniscient being knows the outcome of all things before they occur. If said omniscient being is also omnipotent and creates a living creature, it decides the nature and circumstances of that being and, thus, all decisions it will ever make from the moment it has the cognizance to do so.

There will be more clarity once we separate the bible god( tyrant) from the true meaning of God. God is a religious word for Energy. That being said,we are all Energy, that is what we are and it is US.

We definitely all have freewill and we are excersising it every seconds. The choice to be on this planet and partake in the illusion going on here is subconscious free will. I see it as a game. We are all great actors and actresses. We all play this life game as if it were real. I love this game of us thinking we got no free will.

ifenes:
There will be more clarity once we separate the bible god( tyrant) from the true meaning of God. God is a religious word for Energy. That being said,we are all Energy, that is what we are and it is US.

We definitely all have freewill and we are excersising it every seconds. The choice to be on this planet and partake in the illusion going on here is subconscious free will. I see it as a game. We are all great actors and actresses. We all play this life game as if it were real. I love this game of us thinking we got no free will.

How are you exercising free will every second?

Isn't the phrase: "Subconscious Freewill" a paradoxically statement? How can freewill be subconscious? Doesn't the concept of freewill embody the conscious process of making decisions and carrying out actions?

hopefulLandlord:
Free will is inherently paradoxical, though, and doubly so when dealing with a supposedly omniscient, omnipotent being like the ones theists do

If decisions are dictated by circumstances (circumstances being both internal and external for this matter; predispositions to certain behaviours as much as personal history, etc.), then you have no free will, as you were never in control of your circumstances. If they are dictated by nothing, they're random and arbitrary, meaning you have no say in the decision-making process and, again, no free will.

Likewise, an omniscient being knows the outcome of all things before they occur. If said omniscient being is also omnipotent and creates a living creature, it decides the nature and circumstances of that being and, thus, all decisions it will ever make from the moment it has the cognizance to do so.

I completely agree with everything you've said.

And just appending to the point you made in your last paragraph, doesn't it seem quite odd, that this omniscient being who supposedly decides nature and circumstances expresses utter surprise and even regret when he witnesses the actions of his creations? If this doesn't accentuate the patently obvious fact that this being is merely a product of the imagination of unintelligent humans, I don't know what else would.

Stewie101:


How are you exercising free will every second?

Isn't the phrase: "Subconscious Freewill" a paradoxically statement? How can freewill be subconscious? Doesn't the concept of freewill embody the conscious process of making decisions and carrying out actions?

95% of our daily decisions are made subconsciously and this part of our mind works millions of time faster than we can imagine. It helps us make basic and uneasy decisions. Someone will religiously call it god, spirit guards. It is your protection from the illusionary you. Your breathing, heart beat, beliefs, memories are controlled by this part of your mind. On this plane of existence, I'm afraid your conscious mind is not in charge....still doesn't mean it's not you.

Conscious mind is mostly logical and therefore cannot be trusted. It is only designed to experience and not make decisions. The real you right now that you are aware of is only 5%. When you die, your subconscious is what you become. Then it will become obvious that that is the real you who has always had 100% free will.

Stewie101:


So do we have the freewill to choose to accept this salvation?

I told you already. Free will to make divine decisions is an illusion

ifenes:


95% of our daily decisions are made subconsciously and this part of our mind works millions of time faster than we can imagine. It helps us make basic and uneasy decisions. Someone will religiously call it god, spirit guards. It is your protection from the illusionary you. Your breathing, heart beat, beliefs, memories are controlled by this part of your mind. On this plane of existence, I'm afraid your conscious mind is not in charge....still doesn't mean it's not you.

Conscious mind is mostly logical and therefore cannot be trusted. The real you right now that you are aware of is only 5%. When you die, your subconscious is what you become. Then it will become obvious that that is the real you who has always had 100% free will.

Isn't the point you are making antithetical to your claim about the existence of freewill? If our conscious mind isn't in charge of our thoughts and actions, doesn't that support the claim that we don't have freewill?

What do you mean by the statement that even though it isn't our conscious mind making our decisions, and rather a slew of influences, that it doesn't negate the fact that it isn't still us? Aren't you just playing a language game? If a rat is injected with a drug that induces violent actions, and this drug causes it to act violent and kill other rats, according to you it's still the rat making the decision to kill other rats.

An2elect2:
I told you already. Free will to make divine decisions is an illusion

I seem to think that you are skillfully dancing salsa around my question.

Please respond to this two questions.

Do we have the freewill to choose to accept salvation? If we don't, does this mean that our lives and whether or not we will make it to heaven or hell is already predetermined and we can't escape our already determined fate?

Does divine punishment and divine reward exist? As in, does heaven and hell exist? If it they do, how do you reconcile your tacit allusion to the validity of predetermination with the moral framework of Christianity?

Stewie101:


Isn't the point you are making antithetical to your claim about the existence of freewill? If our conscious mind isn't in charge of our thoughts and actions, doesn't that support the claim that we don't have freewill?

What do you mean by the statement that even though it isn't our conscious mind making our decisions, and rather a slew of influences, that it doesn't negate the fact that it isn't still us? Aren't you just playing a language game? If a rat is injected with a drug that induces violent actions, and this drug causes it to act violent and kill other rats, according to you it's still the rat making the decision to kill other rats.

Let's call the subconscious the higher mind and conscious mind the lower mind of ourselves. The higher mind is at the tree top, it can see what the lower mind cannot see. It spot the danger the lower mind can't see, hence protects it. The lower mind( conscious mind) is like a kid who has no idea what is up there. He has no experience whatsoever, no idea the dangers that lies ahead, he doesn't control anything.

Majority of us planned to be Lawyers, Doctors, wives, Houses etc back in school. But just like kids the conscious mind is ambitious but when reality checks in, he finds himself somewhere else he never imagined. That is the subconscious working, creating subconsciously agreed illusions that will benefit your purpose of playing this life game.

Logic never solves anything. Life is not a straight line, we all know this. The best we can do is to avoid resistance to the subconscious. This is what the Christians call " The will of God".....which in psychology known as the " The will of the subconscious mind/ real man"

I don't know what to say about the rats. I believe the rat is also play the game. This may sound corny , but if you think about what I have written so far, you will realise that there isn't much the physical mind can do. The bible God is a misunderstanding of how our minds work.

ifenes:


Let's call the subconscious the higher mind and conscious mind the lower mind of ourselves. The higher mind is at the tree top, it can see what the lower mind cannot see. It spot the danger the lower mind can't see, hence protects it. The lower mind( conscious mind) is like a kid who has no idea what is up there. He has no experience whatsoever, no idea the dangers that lies ahead, he doesn't control anything.

Majority of us planned to be Lawyers, Doctors, wives, Houses etc back in school. But just like kids the conscious mind is ambitious but when reality checks in, he finds himself somewhere else he never imagined. That is the subconscious working, creating subconsciously agreed illusions that will benefit your purpose of playing this life game.

Logic never solves anything. Life is not a straight line, we all know this. The best we can do is to avoid resistance to the subconscious. This is what the Christians call " The will of God".....which in psychology known as the " The will of the subconscious mind/ real man"

I don't know what to say about the rats. I believe the rat is also play the game. This may sound corny , but if you think about what I have written so far, you will realise that there isn't much the physical mind can do. The bible God is a misunderstanding of how our minds work.

So is this subconscious mind vulnerable to influences within and outside of ourselves? What constitutes this subconscious mind?

Stewie101:


I seem to think that you are skillfully dancing salsa around my question.

Please respond to this two questions.

Do we have the freewill to choose to accept salvation? If we don't, does this mean that our lives and whether or not we will make it to heaven or hell is already predetermined and we can't escape our already determined fate?

Does divine punishment and divine reward exist? As in, does heaven and hell exist? If it they do, how do you reconcile your tacit allusion to the validity of predetermination with the moral framework of Christianity?

Read my previous posts. You have to understand every step of this knowledge . One step at a time, leading to another. If you have understood that our wills are bound to sin then I'll continue, if you want to overlook this, I'm sorry I have to leave you here

Stewie101:


So is this subconscious mind vulnerable to influences within and outside of ourselves? What constitutes this subconscious mind?

The Subconscious( super-conscious mind) does not belong to this illusion.It is all knowing,doesn't distinguish between good or bad, happy or sad because it doesn't need to.

It is too experienced to be influenced. It simply observes the conscious mind but give guidance when needed.... In form of dreams etc

It's main goal is to achieve balance. If had seen it all. According to Einstein, " it is very persistent".

everyone would agree with me that the brain is the engine of thought, decision and action. If we all have different brains, that are wired differently, it means that our decision making processes carry out their functions differently. So, if A, B and C have different brains and different cognitive wirings, and each are asked to make a decision on a particular subject, it follows that there would be a prominent variance in the way A, B, and C would make this decision. Meaning that one of the three is more likely to make the best decision, and one of the three is more likely to make the worst decision. So bearing in mind that each of these individuals didn't choose their brains, do they bear full or any responsibility at all for making the good or bad decision?

Uncle Stewie101, you're making a mountain out of molehill. For you to obey or disobey God doesn't require an high IQ. All what you have to obey is written down. You don't need to do investigation. It's written in black and white.

You people should stop giving people unnecessary headache with your write up.

ifenes:


The Subconscious( super-conscious mind) does not belong to this illusion.It is all knowing,doesn't distinguish between good or bad, happy or sad because it doesn't need to.

It is too experienced to be influenced. It simply observes the conscious mind but give guidance when needed.... In form of dreams etc

It's main goal is to achieve balance. If had seen it all. According to Einstein, " it is very persistent".

So essentially we are at the mercy of our individual subconscious minds? And if we are created with intrinsically different subconscious minds, it means we have intrinsically different predetermined fates. Doesn't this still validate my initial claim that who we are and what we do, isn't within our control? We seem to be saying the same thing.

And I find it a bit disconcerting that you are making these assertive, elabotate claims about the existence and nature of our subconscious mind on the basis of no evidence at all besides new age books that you read.
Shouldn't you also give the Christians and Muslims the benefit of the doubt for believing in Souls and the afterlife on the basis of no evidence besides what's in their holy books, since you are also doing the same thing?

An2elect2:
Read my previous posts. You have to understand every step of this knowledge . One step at a time, leading to another. If you have understood that our wills are bound to sin then I'll continue, if you want to overlook this, I'm sorry I have to leave you here

How can I understand something that's not well illustrated? You are refusing to make sense on this issue and you are also deliberately evading my questions with tools of sophistry.

Please explain what you mean by "Our wills are bound to sin?"

An2elect2:
The criterion is our sinful nature we inherited from Adam because of his disobedience.

Romans5:19 For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.



Psalm 51:2 I have been evil from the day I was born; from the time I was conceived, I have been sinful.

Ephesians 2:1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,

These are examples that show men are born dead in sin and incapable of doing good such as choosing God. This was as a result of the fall of our first parents.

If that's the case, it follows that all men deserve to perish in hell since their choice is always evil and their ways not good or up to God's righteous standard.

So if any man will be saved it has to be by something outside of himself

Utterly ridiculous.

The idea of inherited sin is even much more inane and vacuous.

By your logic, a new born who lives just few minutes before death would still end up in hell despite zero action or inaction by it? wrong?

An2elect2:
Read my previous posts. You have to understand every step of this knowledge . One step at a time, leading to another. If you have understood that our wills are bound to sin then I'll continue, if you want to overlook this, I'm sorry I have to leave you here

Why the prevarication?

Answer the question yes or no. Will you?

Perhaps I should restate.

John 3:16, For God so loved the world......that whosoever believes in him....

This believing part, is it borne out of freewill or divine incursion?

SHALOM!

Stewie101:
Is anyone actually in full control of their thoughts and actions? Do we own the conscious choice to determine the kind of things we do? To the untrained mind, this question seems much more like asking him if he is alive. "Of course I am alive. Of course I am in full control of my thoughts and actions. Durrrrhh!!!" These are the kinds of replies you will get from almost anyone.

Wicked people make up stupid excuses to justify themselves.

. DEUTERONOMY 30:10-20.

10. If thou shalt hearken unto
The Voice of the LORD thy God,
to keep His Commandments
and His Statutes
Which are written in this Book of The Law,
and if thou turn unto The LORD thy God
with all thine heart,
and with all thy soul.
11. For this Commandment
Which I Command thee this Day,
it is not hidden from thee,
neither is it far off.
12. It is not in Heaven,
that thou shouldest say,

"WHO SHALL GO
UP FOR US TO HEAVEN,
AND BRING IT UNTO US,
THAT WE MAY HEAR IT,
AND DO IT?"

13. Neither is it beyond the Sea,
that thou shouldest say,

"WHO SHALL GO
OVER THE SEA FOR US,
AND BRING IT UNTO US,
THAT WE MAY HEAR IT,
AND DO IT?"

14. But the Word is very nigh unto thee,
in thy mouth,
and in thy heart,
that thou mayest do It.

15. See, I have set before thee this Day
Life and Good,
and Death and Evil;
16. In that I Command thee this Day
to Love the LORD thy God,
to walk in His Ways,
and to keep His Commandments
and His Statutes
and His Judgments,
that thou mayest live and multiply:
and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the Land
whither thou goest to possess it.
17. But if thine heart turn away,
so that thou wilt not hear,
but shalt be drawn away,
and worship other gods,
and serve them;
18. I denounce unto you this Day,
that ye shall surely perish,
and that ye shall not
prolong your days upon the Land,
whither thou passest over Jordan
to go to possess it.

19. I call Heaven and Earth
to record this Day against you,
that I have set before you Life and Death,
Blessing and Cursing:
therefore choose Life,

That both thou and thy seed may live:
20. That thou mayest love The LORD thy God,
and that thou mayest obey His Voice,
and that thou mayest cleave unto Him:
for He is thy Life,
and the length of thy days:
that thou mayest dwell in the Land
which the LORD sware unto thy fathers,
to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob,
to give them.

DO YOU WANT TO LIVE, OR DO YOU WANT TO DIE?

Those are your only choices: there is no middle-ground.

If you want to die, DO NOT OBEY THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD.

All you have to do is CONTINUE SINNING- sequentially or occasionally, it does not matter: SINNING WILL KILL YOU.

But if you want to LIVE, you must make the ONCE-AND-FOR-ALL "QUALITY DECISION" to LEAVE SIN.

Some people cannot do that at all.
Some people can only try, but keep failing.
Some people can barely accomplish it, with excruciating effort.
Others just hearing they should do something, just do it, effortlessly.

What most people fail to realize in their very quick and superficial examination of the concept of freewill is first that we are different. What this implies is that we all differ in our anatomical and physiological make up. What this invariably means is that we have different brains.

WRONG!

Barring RARE Pathological Defects, we ALL have EXACTLY THE SAME brains.

And everyone would agree with me that the brain is the engine of thought, decision and action.

WRONG!

The MIND is the the engine of Thought, Decision, and Action!

THE BRAIN is just a LUMP OF FLESH, set up as a COMPUTER.

THE MIND does not NEED the Brain, but, through FAULTY EDUCATION, becomes MERGED with it as an EMULATOR.

THIS is how we were IMPRISONED.

If we all have different brains, that are wired differently, it means that our decision making processes carry out their functions differently. So, if A, B and C have different brains and different cognitive wirings, and each are asked to make a decision on a particular subject, it follows that there would be a prominent variance in the way A, B, and C would make this decision.

WE DO NOT HAVE DIFFERENT BRAINS- UNLESS THEY ARE DEFORMED, OR DAMAGED- WHICH IS RARE, AND A DIFFERENT ISSUE ALTOGETHER.

IDENTICAL models of the same Laptop Computer or Smartphone perform differently, DEPENDING ON THE SOFTWARE INSTALLED, THE APPS ACTIVATED, AND THE USER INSTRUCTIONS FED TO IT.

Meaning that one of the three is more likely to make the best decision, and one of the three is more likely to make the worst decision. So bearing in mind that each of these individuals didn't choose their brains, do they bear full or any responsibility at all for making the good or bad decision?

EVERYONE CHOOSES HOW THEY USE THEIR BRAINS.

The INFERIOR MINDS FORGET that THEY made those decisions, and that no one made them for them.

THERE ARE FOUR CATEGORIES OF PEOPLE.

I have written this Teaching up- but all the weak-minded, wicked, lazy, slothful, cowardly, Hypocritical Christians on Nairaland merely eyed it, and ignored It, without so much as THANKING me for clearing up what their "PASTORS" never would.

Their ingratitude will be and is their undoing.

. REVELATION 22:11.

11. "He that is UNJUST,
let him be Unjust still:
and he which is FILTHY,
let him be Filthy still:
and he that is RIGHTEOUS,
let him be Righteous still:
and he that is HOLY,
let him be Holy still."

OUR DEFAULT SPIRITUAL ENERGY CATEGORY IS DETERMINED AT OUR CONCEPTION BY THE MEAN OF THE ENERGY CATEGORIES OF OUR PARENTS AT THE TIME. It is the DUTY of every parent to OPTIMIZE their Spiritual Energy before attempting to procreate.

Anyone who does not know how to do this is still a CHILD, and not yet an ADULT.

It is therefore commonsense for any person to determine what their Spiritual Energy category is- and, if they find that it is BAD, then FIX it.

That is what THE GOSPEL is for.

. MARK 1:14-15.

14. Now after that John was put in prison,
Jesus came into Galilee,
preaching The Gospel of The Kingdom of God,
15. And saying,
"The time is fulfilled,
and The Kingdom of God is at hand:
repent ye, and believe The Gospel."

. LUKE 8:4-18.

4. And when much people were gathered together,
and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a Parable:

5. A sower went out to sow his seed:
and as he sowed,
some fell by the way side;
and it was trodden down,
and the fowls of the air devoured it.
6. And some fell upon a rock;
and as soon as it was sprung up,
it withered away,
because it lacked moisture.
7. And some fell among thorns;
and the thorns sprang up with it,
and choked it.
8. And other fell on good ground,
and sprang up,
and bare fruit an hundredfold.”

And when he had said these things,
he cried,

“He that hath ears to hear,
let him hear.”

9. And his Disciples asked him,
saying,

“What might this Parable be?”

10. And he said,

“Unto you it is given to know
The Mysteries of the Kingdom of God:
but to others in Parables;

'THAT SEEING
THEY MIGHT NOT SEE,
AND HEARING
THEY MIGHT NOT UNDERSTAND.'

11. "Now the Parable is this:

'THE SEED IS THE WORD OF GOD.
12. 'THOSE BY THE WAY SIDE
ARE THEY THAT HEAR;
THEN COMETH THE DEVIL,
AND TAKETH AWAY THE WORD
OUT OF THEIR HEARTS,
LEST THEY SHOULD BELIEVE
AND BE SAVED.
13. 'THEY ON THE ROCK ARE THEY,
WHICH, WHEN THEY HEAR,
RECEIVE THE WORD WITH JOY;
AND THESE HAVE NO ROOT,
WHICH FOR A WHILE BELIEVE,
AND IN TIME OF TEMPTATION FALL AWAY.
14. "AND THAT WHICH FELL AMONG THORNS ARE THEY,
WHICH, WHEN THEY HAVE HEARD, GO FORTH,
AND ARE CHOKED WITH CARES AND RICHES
AND PLEASURES OF THIS LIFE,
AND BRING NO FRUIT TO PERFECTION."
15. "BUT THAT ON THE GOOD GROUND ARE THEY,
WHICH IN AN HONEST AND GOOD HEART,
HAVING HEARD THE WORD, KEEP IT,
AND BRING FORTH FRUIT WITH PATIENCE.'

16. “No man, when he hath lighted a candle,
covereth it with a vessel,
or putteth it under a bed;
but setteth it on a candlestick,
that they which enter in may see the light.
17. “For nothing is secret,
that shall not be made manifest;
neither any thing hid,
that shall not be known and come abroad.
18. “Take heed therefore how ye hear:
for whosoever hath,
to him shall be given;
and whosoever hath not,
from him shall be taken
even that which he seemeth to have.”

YOUR REACTION TO THE WORD OF GOD- WHETHER YOU ARE ABLE TO CONTROL YOUR MIND AND YOUR BODY TO KEEP THE WORD OF GOD- DETERMINES YOUR SPIRITUAL ENERGY CATEGORY.

YOU therefore are "FILTHY/ON THE ROCK."

YOU BELIEVE the Word of God, but it is not in you to KEEP It.

Stewie101:
Another area most people fail to consider when they evaluate the concept of free will is the variables that are in play in the life of an individual.

VARIABLES ARE IRRELEVANT.

. JOHN 1:1-5,9.

IN THE Beginning was The Word,
and The Word was with God,
and The Word was God.
2. The same was
in The Beginning with God.
3. All things were made by Him;
and without Him
was not any thing made
that was made.
4. In Him was Life;
and The Life was The Light of Men.
5. And The Light shineth in Darkness;
and The Darkness comprehended it not.
9. That was The True Light,
Which lighteth every man
that cometh into The World.

EVERY LIVING CREATURE IS IMPRINTED AT BIRTH WITH THE LAW OF GOD TO THAT SPECIES BY A SPECIAL MANIFESTATION OF GOD DEDICATED TO DOING THAT.

MANKIND generally quickly loses THEIR copy. and allows THE DEVIL to TAKE It from us.

. JOB 28:28.

28. "And unto Man He said,

'BEHOLD, THE FEAR OF THE LORD,
THAT (IS) WISDOM;
AND TO DEPART FROM EVIL
(IS) UNDERSTANDING.' "

. MATTHEW 13:19.

19. "When any one heareth
The Word of The Kingdom,
and Understandeth (It) not,
then cometh The Wicked (One),
and catcheth away
that which was sown in his heart.
This is he which received seed
by the Way Side."

IT IS THE JOB OF THE PARENTS TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING, OF COURSE- BUT THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE ALL OF US, TO KEEP HOLD OF WHATEVER GOD GIVES US, AND NOT LET THE ENEMY TAKE IT.

Example of these variables include: The experiences of the individual and the environment of the individual, and the role these two play in shaping an individual's personality, triggering genetic predispositions and creating world views and ideologies, which in turn influences controllably, his actions.

THE ONLY THING THAT IS SUPPOSED TO SHAPE YOUR PERSONALITY IS YOUR SERVICE WITH GOD.

You have no right to choose other ideologies.

. MATTHEW 7:1-12.

"JUDGE not, that ye be not judged.
2. "For with what judgment ye judge,
ye shall be judged:
and with what measure ye mete,
it shall be measured to you again.
3. "And why beholdest thou the mote
that is in thy brother's eye,
but considerest not the beam
that is in thine own eye?
4. "Or how wilt thou say to thy brother,

'LET ME PULL OUT THE MOTE
OUT OF THINE EYE;'

and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5. "Thou Hypocrite, first cast out the beam
out of thine own eye;
and then shalt thou see clearly
to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.
6. "Give not that which is holy unto the dogs,
neither cast ye your pearls before swine,
lest they trample them under their feet,
and turn again and rend you.
7. "Ask, and it shall be given you;
seek, and ye shall find; knock,
and it shall be opened unto you:
8. "For every one that asketh receiveth;
and he that seeketh findeth;
and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
9. "Or what man is there of you,
whom if his son ask bread,
will he give him a stone?
10. "Or if he ask a fish,
will he give him a serpent?
11. "If ye then,
being Evil,
know how to give good gifts
unto your children,
how much more shall your Father
Which is in Heaven
give good things
to them that ask him?
12. "Therefore all things
whatsoever ye would
that men should do to you,
do ye even so to them:
for this is The Law
and The Prophets."

. MATTHEW 12:41-45.

41. "The men of Nineveh shall rise
in Judgment with this Generation,
and shall Condemn it:
because they Repented
at the Preaching of Jonas;
and, behold,
a Greater than Jonas is here.
42. "The queen of the South shall rise up
in The Judgment with this Generation,
and shall Condemn it:
for she came from
the uttermost parts of the Earth
to hear the Wisdom of Solomon;
and, behold,
a Greater than Solomon is here.
43. "When the unclean spirit
is gone out of a man,
he walketh through dry places,
seeking rest,
and findeth none.
44. "Then he saith,

'I WILL RETURN INTO MY HOUSE
FROM WHENCE I CAME OUT;'

and when he is come,
he findeth it empty,
swept, and garnished.
45. "Then goeth he,
and taketh with himself
seven other spirits
more Wicked than himself,
and they enter in and dwell there:
and the last state of that man
is worse than the first.
Even so shall it be also
unto this Wicked Generation."

IT DOES NOT MATTER WHERE YOU ARE IN THE WORLD, IF YOU HAVE AN HONEST AND GOOD HEART, YOU WILL SEEK OUT THE TRUTH, AND YOU WILL FIND THE TRUTH.

RICHARD DAWKINS cynically said that one's Religion is determined by where one happens to be born, and grow up.

[See: THE GOD DELUSION, by Richard Dawkins.]

As a person older and far better educated than I am, he knows that he is lying, and his Atheist colleagues know that he is lying, and he has only been allowed to get away with this LIE, because the British Churches are deliberate "CARRYING THAT BUM," and allowing him to continue being the flagship for Atheism, when they should have "LUSITANIA'D" his ass, the first month he opened his mouth.

BORN AGAIN AND FULL GOSPEL CHRISTIANS have testified of finding Christ and achieving conversion from all over the World, even in the mighty Atheistic SOVIET UNION, where Conversion would mean arrest, deportation to a TUNDRA LABOUR CAMP, with BEATINGS and SUMMARY EXECUTIONS possible at any time, on any pretext. RED CHINA, SAUDI ARABIA- it does not MATTER: people who WANT The Truth will FIND it!

They will NOT care what their ENVIRONMENT tells them, nor tried to make them into.

The INFALLIBLE THERMOSTAT of Human Behavior is: WE KNOW WHAT WE LIKE.

Therefore, WE KNOW that doing what WE DON'T LIKE unto others is WRONG.

That is HALF of the Foundation of THE LAW of GOD.

The OTHER half- that we DO GOOD to impress OUR CREATOR will come later.

If we were talking about HUMAN IDEOLOGY, perhaps Human Stamina would be a factor: someone might get TIRED of trying, and FALL BY THE WAYSIDE. But we are talking about THE KINGDOM OF GOD: HE WILL SEND SOMEONE to tell such a person what they need to know, to attain COMPLETION. Communion with God with their own senses.

Admitting that who we are today and every "choice" we make as a result of who we are, is a product of a concatenation of experiences we had no control over, and these experiences shape our lives differently, nullifies the belief that we fully control over our actions. If we aren't in control of the experiences that shaped our lives, how then are we in control of the actions that proceed from them?

WE DO NOT HAVE FULL CONTROL OVER OUR ACTIONS, UNTIL WE ATTAIN SELF-DETERMINISM.

SELF-DETERMINISM is the state of FULL UNDERSTANDING required to be IN FULL CONTROL of our DYNAMICS.

. THE EIGHT DYNAMICS.

1.SELF; 2.FAMILY; 3.GROUPS; 4.ALL MANKIND; 5.ALL LIVING THINGS;
6. THE MEST (Matter, Energy, Space, Time- i.e. PHYSICAL) UNIVERSE; 7.SPIRITS; 8.GOD.

THE AWARENESS LEVELS REQUIRED TO CONTROL THE DYNAMICS.

8.Self; 12.Groups; 15.All Mankind; 22. MEST Universe; 32.Spirits; 40.God.

. The L. Ron Hubbard TONE SCALE.

40. SERENITY;
30. POSTULATES;
22. GAMES;
20. ACTION;
8.0 EXHILARATION;
6.0 AESTHETICS;
4.0 ENTHUSIASM;
3.5 CHEERFULNESS;
3.0 CONSERVATISM;
2.5 BOREDOM;
2.0 OVERT HOSTILITY;
1.8 PAIN;
1.5 ANGER;
1.4 HATE;
1.2 NO SYMPATHY;
1.1 COVERT HOSTILITY;
1.0 FEAR;
0.9 SYMPATHY;
0.5 GRIEF;
0.1 APATHY;
0.0 BODY DEATH.

See: THE DYNAMICS & TONE SCALE, by L. Ron Hubbard.
THE FUNDAMENTALS OF THOUGHT, by L. Ron Hubbard.
SCIENTOLOGY 0-8: The Book of Basics, by L. Ron Hubbard.

Using our hypothetical A, B and C, it's not unreasonable to say that if A, B and C are born with different personalities and predispositions, and grow up in different environments and have different experiences, that either of them is more likely to make a certain kind of good or bad decision or take a certain kind of good or bad action.

THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD APPLIES EQUALLY TO EVERYONE.

. JOHN 8:51-53.

51. "Verily, verily, I say unto you,

'IF A MAN KEEP MY SAYING,
HE SHALL NEVER SEE DEATH.' "

52. Then said the Jews unto him,
"Now we know that thou hast a devil.
Abraham is dead, and the Prophets;
and thou sayest,

'IF A MAN KEEP MY SAYING,
HE SHALL NEVER TASTE OF DEATH.'

53. "Art thou greater than our father Abraham,
which is dead?
and the Prophets are dead:
whom makest thou thyself?"

THE JEWS HAD THE BEST ENVIRONMENT IN THE WORLD FOR RECEIVING THE GOSPEL- BUT THEY REJECTED IT.

. JOHN 1:10-11.

10. He was in the World,
and the World was made by him,
and the World knew him not.
11. He came unto his own,
and his own received him not.

THE DISCIPLES OF YAHSHUA had the BEST EXPERIENCES POSSIBLE for receiving The Gospel, but they ABANDONED It.

. MATTHEW 11:2-6.

2. Now when John had heard in the prison
the Works of Christ, he sent two of his Disciples,
3. And said unto him,
"Art thou he that should come,
or do we look for another?"
4. Jesus answered and said unto them,
"Go and shew John again those things
which ye do hear and see:
5. "The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk,
the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear,
the dead are raised up,
and the Poor have The Gospel preached to them.
6. "And blessed is he,
whosoever shall not be offended in me."

. MARK 14:50.

50. And they all forsook him, and fled.

THEREFORE, YOU CANNOT BLAME THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF YOUR UPBRINGING FOR YOUR UNBELIEF AND SINS.

Stewie101:


How can I understand something that's not well illustrated? You are refusing to make sense on this issue and you are also deliberately evading my questions with tools of sophistry.

Please explain what you mean by "Our wills are bound to sin?"

Do you believe the Bible?