Difficulties with God’s foreknowledge Is God’s.ppt

Difficulties with God’s foreknowledge Is God’s foreknowledge absolute and predetermining? “All are not creation on equal terms, but some are preordained to eternal life, others to eternal damnation; and, accordingly, as each has been created for one or other of these ends, we say that he has been predestined to life or to death. This God has testified, not only in the case of single individuals; he has also given a specimen of it in the whole posterity of Abraham, to make it plain that the future condition of each nation was entirely at his disposal.” (Institutes, Book 3, Chapter 21, Sec. 5 as quoted in McGuiggan’s commentary on Romans) “Reformation theology has contended that the divine foreknowledge contains the ingredient of divine determination. The Reformers claimed that God indeed foreknows who will believe, because believing in Christ is not a human achievement, but a divine gift imparted to men by God’s grace and Spirit. Thus God’s foreknowledge is not merely prescience, but knowledge that itself determines the event. That is, in Reformation thought what God foreknows He foreordains.” (ISBE) It is true that God has foreseen what in His counsels He will do. God foreknew that His Son would die for the sins of mankind. this Man, delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. (Acts 2:23) God foreknew and thus selected those who believed in Him would be His people. 1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ..to those who are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, that you may obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in fullest measure. (1 Peter 1:1-2) God foreknew that those He chose would have an inheritance with Him. also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, (Ephesians 1:11) But the Cal