Has the fate of mankind been decided?
The Bible does talk about predestination, but it does not predestinate the salvation and destruction of mankind, but the redemption plan of Christ.
I. reservations
The Bible tells us that the plan of redemption was planned before the world was created. "Just as God chose us in Christ before the creation of the world to make us holy and flawless before him, and because he loves us, he predestined us to be sons through Jesus according to his own will. (Ephesians1:4,5) It tells us that before the creation of the world, we were chosen in Christ, not a single person, but a plan. Because God gives creatures, whether angels or humans, free will and free choice. What if human beings commit crimes? Therefore, God has set up a redemption plan in advance, and once human beings commit crimes, they can implement the redemption plan. Therefore, the Lord Jesus came into the world to save mankind, which was also a plan drawn up before the creation of the world. Scripture says that Christ was known to God before the creation of the world, but it was in this last time that he appeared for you? Quot (formerly 1: 20)
So, it's not a plan to save someone or destroy someone, but a plan to save someone. No matter who believes in Jesus Christ, there is no hope of salvation For God did not ordain us to be punished, but to be saved through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Thessalonians 5: 9)
Second, choose
Some people say that the people chosen by the Lord Jesus must be saved. If so, the Lord has no voters, and they can only perish. Isn't that fair? In fact, the people chosen by the Lord want them to work for the Lord. The Lord said, "It was not you who chose me, but I chose you and sent you to bear fruit, so that your fruit would last forever." (about 15: 16) and the people chosen by the Lord are not sure that they will all be saved.
Saul, the first king of Israel, was chosen by God himself. Samuel said to all the people, "who do you think is like him among the people whom the Lord has chosen?" Then all the people cheered loudly and said, "Long live the king!" " "Sam. 10: 20-24) but as a result, Saul embarked on the road of destruction.
The twelve disciples of Jesus were also chosen by the Lord. Jesus said to them, didn't I choose you twelve disciples? But one of you is the devil. "(John 6: 70) shows that the people chosen by the Lord still have the right of free will and free choice. They can choose to serve God and be saved, or they can choose to serve the devil and die.
Third, freedom of choice.
God loved the world so much that he gave us his only son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life? Quot (John 3: 16) God wants everyone to repent and live forever. The key to the problem lies in people's own choices.
The Bible says, "The word of the Lord came to me and said,' O house of Israel, can't I treat you like this Potter? As the clay is in the Potter's hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. (Jeremiah18: 5,6) God is a Potter, and man is an earthenware vessel. The apostle Paul also said, "Don't potters have the right to use a lump of mud as a valuable vessel and a lump of mud as a humble vessel?" (Luo. 9: 2 1) Although God can shape people at will like a Potter, he doesn't. He gives people the right to choose freely. God said through Moses, "Look, I have put life, blessing, death and disaster before you today. I command you to love the LORD your God, walk in his ways, and keep his commandments, statutes and judgments, so that you may live and increase in number. The LORD your God will bless you in the land where you are entering to possess it. ..... I call heaven and earth to witness to you today that I have put life and death, good and evil before you, so you should choose life so that you and your descendants can live? Quot (Shen 30: 15, 16- 19)
God planted two special trees in the Garden of Eden: the tree of life and the tree of distinguishing good from evil. Jesus showed us two roads, the broad road and the narrow road, which we can choose freely. Therefore, life and death, misfortune and happiness are before us, and the problem lies in our own wise choices.
Two results of destruction and preservation of Jerusalem and Nineveh (refer to road 13: 34, 35, take 3: 1-7) illustrate a problem. God said, "When did I say that a nation or a country would be uprooted, demolished and destroyed?" . If the nation I mentioned deviates from their evil, I will regret it. I won't bring them the evil I want. When I talk about a nation and a country, if they do evil in my eyes and don't listen to me, I will regret not giving them the blessing I said. "(Yeh 18: 7- 10) It can be seen that human destiny, life and death, fortune, salvation and extinction all depend on the results we choose.
Fourth, how to control your own destiny.
1, when the right choice is made (Job 34: 4)
"We should choose what is right and know each other what is good. Quot (Job 34: 4) Since God has given us the right to choose freely, we should cherish this right and choose "yes" and "good" carefully. Careful choice is an important link in determining your own destiny.
2. Mary chose good luck (Road 10: 38-42)
Martha and Mary are both loved by Jesus. They love Jesus very much. One day, Jesus passed Bethany. When Martha saw the Lord, she took Jesus home and enthusiastically went to the kitchen to prepare for Jesus. But Mary sat at Jesus' feet and listened to him. Martha had a lot of things to attend to, so she was anxious. She came forward and said,' Lord, don't you care that my sister left me to attend to her? Please tell him to help me. Jesus answered, Martha, Martha, you have many worries, but only one thing is indispensable. Mary chose a beautiful blessing and couldn't be taken away. "(Road 10: 38-42)
Despite Martha's hospitality, she chose to "worry about many things" but lost "good luck". Since then, Martha has never been mentioned in the Bible. Mary sat at Jesus' feet, listened to the word of the Lord and kept everything the Lord said in her heart. From then on, she followed Jesus closely. Even though the Lord was crucified and even his disciples fled, she remained with the Lord and never left him. (Reference: 19: 25) Even if Jesus died and was put on the grave, she would go and get him (Reference: 20: 1 1- 15). It can be seen how true her love for the Lord is! All this is inseparable from the fact that she sat at the feet of the Lord Jesus and listened to him that day. It can be seen that the opportunity given by the Lord to each of us is equal, and the problem lies in our own grasp of this opportunity. There are many examples in the Bible, whether Cain and Abel, Esau and Jacob, Saul and David. They all got the same opportunity given by God, but one seized the opportunity and got a good blessing, but the other lost it!
3. Don't choose immediate interests (2 Cor. 4: 18)
"It turns out that what we care about is not what we see, but what we can't see, because what we see is temporary and what we can't see is forever." (after the forest 4: 18)
As a Christian, I don't know these truths, but sometimes when I encounter problems in real life, I will be considerate of my body and choose immediate interests. As a result, I will be hit hard, even my family will be ruined. Lot's choice is the most obvious example.
Abraham and Lot could not live together because they had many cattle, sheep and possessions? Quot Abram said to Lot, "Don't fight between you and me, and don't fight between your shepherd and mine, because we are the same flesh and blood. Isn't it all in front of your eyes? Please leave me, you turn left, I turn right, you turn right, I turn left. Lot lifted up his eyes and saw that all the plain of Jordan was fertile as far as Zoar, like the garden of the Lord, and like the land of Egypt before Sodom and Gomorrah, the Lord did not destroy it. So Lot chose the whole plain of Jordan, moved eastward and separated from each other. Abraham lived in the land of Canaan, and Lot lived in the cities of the plain and gradually moved to Sodom. The people of Sodom have sinned greatly before God. " (Zhuang 13: 8- 13)
The tragic fate of the lot family: the wife disobeyed orders and was destroyed later; Two son-in-law and his daughter who married his daughter died in the fire; Although the two daughters left Sodom, they were influenced by Sodom's sins and committed disobedience and were cursed. Although Lot himself was saved, he was like a stick drawn from the fire (Mo 4: 1 1). All this bad luck has befallen Lot? Quot Raising my eyes, I saw that the whole Jordan Plain up to Zoar was the result of wet "immediate interests".
Since God has given us the right to choose freely, we should not only cherish this precious privilege, but also control our own destiny.
4. Try to be a valuable container (2. 2: 20, 2 1)
"In a big house, there are not only gold and silver, but also wood and pottery, some of which are precious and some are crude. If a man purifies himself from abominations, he will become a valuable vessel, holy, fit for the Lord's use and ready to do all kinds of good deeds. (After 2: 20, 2 1)
The congregation is a big family, with believers from all walks of life and different social habits. As Paul said, there are gold, silver, wood and pottery, but they are by no means static. Whether to be a valuable vessel or a humble vessel depends on everyone's free choice. Paul put forward to us the condition of becoming a valuable vessel, that is, holiness, and there is nothing to be hated. "Dear brothers, we should always thank God for you, because he chose you from the beginning. That you may be saved by being sanctified by the Holy Spirit through faith. "(Post 2: 13)