Various Passages
1. God can do whatever He pleases (Ps. 115:3, 135:6). Can we say the same about man? Why or why not?
Read Ps. 33:10-11, Prov. 16:1, 9, 19:21, 20:24, 21:1, Jer. 10:23, Jas. 4:13-15.
2. This does not mean that man is a preprogrammed robot whose choices are not real. How then do God’s will and man’s will fit together?
Read Gen. 50:20, Isa. 10:5-7, Matt. 26:24, Acts 4:27-28.1
3. In what sense did Adam and Eve have a free will?
Read Gen. 2:16-17, Eccl. 7:29.
4. How did the Fall in Genesis 3 affect man’s nature and will?
Read Gen. 5:1, 3, 6:5, 8:21, Ps. 51:5, 58:3, Jer. 13:23, John 3:6, Rom. 3:10-12, 5:19, 8:7-8, 1 Cor. 2:14, 2 Cor. 4:4, Eph. 2:1-3, 4:18, Tit. 3:3.
5. As a lion’s will is bound by its nature causing it to kill, so man’s will is bound by his fallen nature causing him to sin. Does this inability to honour God mean that we are not responsible for our actions? Why or why not?
Read John 3:19-20, 5:40, 8:44.
5. What must happen in order for man’s will to be set free?
Read Ezek. 36:26-27, John 1:12-13, 3:3-8, 8:32, 34, 36, Gal. 1:15-16, 5:1, Phil. 2:13.2
6. Through Christ and the Spirit the believer’s nature and will have been set free. What does this mean for our battle against temptation and sin?
Read Rom. 6:5-7, 11, 14, 17-18, 22, 8:2-4.
1 We can compare God’s will and man’s will to a goldfish in bowl. The fish can swim wherever it pleases, but I can move the bowl where I want it. Thus the fish is under my will, while at the same time doing its own will.
2 Although many will deny this, almost every believer acknowledges God’s power to change man’s will. We do so every time we pray for our loved ones to be saved. Do you realize that you are actually asking God to change someone’s heart, mind and will?