Are we predestined? Do we have a choice? Are we just puppets in the hands of a great entity? Some tell us we are just pawns in a great chess game between God and the Devil and are moved by one or the other. Nothing is our fault for we are subject to the will of God or the Devil depending upon whom we serve, or which side of the board we are predestined to be a piece on. This, my friend, is Greek mythology.

"This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live. Deut. 30:19 NIV

Here are some scriptures for you to consider.

"Do not envy a violent man or choose any of his ways." Prov. 3:31 NIV

"He will eat curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right." Is. 7:15 NIV And again,

"I will destine you for the sword, and you will all bend down for the slaughter; for I called but you did not answer, I spoke but you did not listen. You did evil in my sight and chose what displeases me." Is. 65:12

So we see that God has given us a choice. From the very beginning God did not manipulate mankind but gave them a choice. He gave Adam and Eve a choice to eat or not to eat. He gave Abram a choice to obey or not to obey, to believe or not to believe. And he gives us the same choice today. So, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear his voice, and harden not your heart as in the provocation." Heb. 3:7

God doesn’t want mindless manipulated puppets, he wants sons and he wants them to mature to the place that they can make the choices that are beneficial to their life and well being. Father God wants sons upon whom he can lavish his love because they choose to love him. Agape love does not seek its own but the betterment of others. God the Father is not selfish. It is just not in his nature. Nothing can be more selfish than to control some ones life. It is the mark of the Religious Harlot to manipulate and control the lives of men and women. It is a flagrant insult to the very nature and love of God to consider that he would make such demands upon his creation.

God’s Foreknowledge

When there is a choice to be made inevitably some will make the wrong choice. This is out of ignorance or lack of understanding. "My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge." Hosea 4:6 So, God had to set in motion a plan for those who make the wrong choices. This he did before he even uttered the first words of creation. By his foreknowledge he looked into the future and knew who would accept and who would not accept his love. This is not predestination. This is just knowledge. There are many of God’s people I know will not come into sonship, but that does not mean that they couldn’t, just that they do not choose to do so. How did I know this?

"For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted(placed in the family) as his (mature adult) sons through YahShua Messiah, in accordance with his pleasure and will." Eph. 1:4-5

It is his pleasure and will for "US" to be placed as sons in him. This, my friend, is predestination. Not that certain individuals are predestined to be sons, but the realm of sonship is predestined to be ours, all we have to do is take it. This is God’s plan, his will and his purpose for the human race.

"In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will." Eph. 1:11 NIV

"For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified." Rom. 8:29-30 NIV

Who Is Predestined?

Let us suppose predestination is on individual bases and God is a respecter of persons and he is sitting up in heaven saying to the Devil, "I’ll take that one and you can have that one." Let us see in Scripture who God chooses and who he doesn’t.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." John 3:16-21 NIV

So now I must ask you, who does he choose and who has he chosen to be conformed into the image of his dear son? Who is whoever? I don’t see any exclusion here. However, I do see a choice. If any are excluded it is self-imposed because of an evil heart. Now I could go into how no man can come unto YahShua except the Father draw him. Those who hold to the doctrine of personal predestination use this scripture to make their point. However, I can then show you how that when the Spirit of truth came into the world he came to convict the "world" of sin and woo people or draw people to YahShua for the saving of their soul. Who does God wish to save? We read that the "world" through him might be saved. Who is excluded? Who is the Holy Spirit convicting of sin and drawing to YahShua? Who is included in the world "world"?

Ever since the promise of the Father, the Holy Spirit, came into the world he has been doing the work he was sent to do. That all men everywhere have had the chance to come to the saving grace of our Lord and Savior. Then he also gave unto us the ministry of reconciliation, to preach the gospel to those who have not heard while the Spirit working to verify and give credentials to what we are saying. If we are already predestined by God to be his or not to be his why the ministry of reconciliation. Why the death of Messiah, if we are already either his or the Devils and we have no choice? If we were his from the beginning of creation and had no choice in the matter, we would already have been saved and not needed the blood of the Lamb.

But we read, "For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive." 1 Cor.15:22 NIV Adam made a choice for us and we inherited it. YahShua made another choice for us and we can inherit that also, but to do so we must be born again. "Jesus answered, I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, You must be born again." John 3:5-7

The Race

Life here on earth is like a relay race. When we are born we are born into the human race. "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize." 1 Cor. 9:24 NIV Like in a relay race there is a team and while the other members of the team run the others cheer them on. Even though not all cross the finish line, yet all stand in the winner's circle and receive the reward.

The first leg of this race was the pre-flood people. They were a law unto themselves. Then the baton was passed to Moses and Aaron with the law and the prophets. "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." Heb. 12:1 Then it was taken by YahShua and born again believers in the church age. Paul declares, "However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord YahShua has given me." Acts 20:24 And in the end of his life he says, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 2 Tim. 4:7 NIV

The church age has closed and now the torch is being passed on to the sons of God and theirs will be the final leg of this race. They will bring restoration and consummation to the human race. The reward is set before us. Do you see the ribbon not far ahead? Then as Paul and the others cheers us on from the sidelines let us be, "…Straining toward what is ahead, press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called… All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you." Phil. 3:13-15 NIV

Paul goes on to speak of the winner’s circle, "Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give to me at that day; and not to me only, but also to all them that have loved his appearing." 2 Tim. 4:8 NIV