D L Henderson
4 min readJun 27, 2024

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Let's stop confusing everybody...

Any suggestive definition that locks everybody into a foreordained performance and destiny is wrong. Mankind was given free will and the ability to choose. We were also given responsibilities of dominion over the Earth which we could choose to do or to neglect to do. In addition, at least with Adam and Eve, we were given moral responsibility and the foreknowledge of predetermined consequence.

God told them the one and only thing that they were not to do, and He openly told them the consequence if they chose to disobey.

That's where it ends. Full stop.

Yes. Consequences are what is foreordained and it seems from Adam's experience to today that when our free will choices conflict with and oppose God's guidance, we end up in negative consequences.

That is the only part of Human existence which is preordained: consequences.

The Gospel message is about saving us from the consequences of those wrong choices.

Yes. There are examples of Rulers' hearts being opened or closed to God, but only for overarching purposes - like that one Pharaoh of Egypt where God used Moses and Aaron. On the other hand, the Pharaoh who exalted Joseph in the Government of Egypt did so based on Joseph's meritorious results and not by direct metaphysical interference. His recorded downfall was the result of Potiphar's wife's wrong choices...

There is certainly a lot for us to learn there.

Yes. God guided Joseph with supernatural, prophetic dreams, but also natural human skills, opposing faults in his brothers, and what their reactions were to God's guidance in Joseph's life.

Guidance. Oversight. Protection. Not a puppet show.

Look. Here's the best illustration I can come up with: When people "fall in love," don't we choose what to do next? "For better or worse; for richer or poorer..." Yes. Sometimes we choose badly but usually it's a mix of overreacting rather than finding good counsel - the best counsel is from God, of course - but then, it remains up to individuals to choose to listen and to apply, or no.

So, I think you and I are pretty much on the same page. However, when you bring up Christian theologians to say that "the Bible presents competing verses on the subject," without challenge, I must continually point out that Humans mix up the Scriptures - either deliberately or ignorantly.

Misunderstanding leads to misconception.

When we realize that we have the power of free will, then we must be misunderstanding the verses with the word "predestination." - And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions?" - 1 Kings 18:21, NKJV.

Isn't that where theologians abandon and forsake the Gospel?

Strong's Greek, 3724, sets the meaning of "predestination" as "establish boundaries, limits." So, there are guardrails to prevent Mankind from accidentally driving off into the abyss, but then there's also this warning, "For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way." 2 Thessalonians 2:7, NKJV.

Then things will really "hit the fan."

For a certainty, there is a predetermined end. Yes. However, that end is a matter of each person's choosing.

Now, all the verses you quoted well illustrate God's gift of free will, and I ask, "What is love, in all its forms, without free will?"

Further, here's my advice on extracting dogmatic doctrine: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;" Proverbs 3:5, NKJV.

Let me try to illustrate:

Reading poetry, novels, and other literature is an adventure in imagination where the authors use words and phrases, paragraphs and chapters, to paint pictures in our minds. If we limit our understanding by defining each and every word we will get a bunch of dots and not see the whole drawing. That's the rub. We are nitpicking words, arguing about individual words. So, we will not be able to view the whole meaning. We end up in this way to misunderstand, misconstrue, and otherwise mess up the Biblical authors' messages from God.

We become critics falling over the rock, the stumbling stone, as it were.

In summation, God has a plan for Mankind: salvation and newness of our inner life through Jesus. Each of us can choose to accept or choose to reject His generous offer. We can choose to daily walk with Him in His Pathway created for us, or we can choose to go our own old, demented way.

There are not "many paths to God," as some contend, but we can always change the road we are on. Paradise is on one of the roads ahead. However, just like our modern day highways, we can choose our destination. God laid out the routes on a map. It's up to each of us to decide which way to go.

Let me leave you with this verse - "Jesus wept."

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D L Henderson

Born 1950; HS 1968; Born again 1972; Cornell ILR; Steward, Local President/Business Agent; Husband, father, grandfather; winner/loser/everything in between