Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Predestination vs foreknowledge vs free will

Ephesians 1:4-6 talks about a key doctrine of christian faith. It's a doctrine that has vexed theologians over centuries, created denominations, and even used by atheists in debates and discussions. As I was studying this portion at a bible study, I was reminded of Judas.

How can I explain Judas' betrayal of Jesus Christ? Was he picked by God for this purpose (predestined) or did he have a free will to chose his destiny? If God knew this would have happened, could he have prevented it? I'm no theologian, but I am keen student of it. Here's my explanation. 

God decided in advance that Judas know him and chose him to accept Christ as the Lord of his life (he was one of the twelve disciples), but he decided to betray Christ of his own free will, although God knew ahead of time that Judas will do so (foreknowledge). 

There, that's predestination, foreknowledge and free will for you in a single sentence. Let me know if you disagree. 

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