SPELLING EDITED Cc-26. Is GOD ALL-KNOWING or OMNISCIENT? Many Christians and even non-Christians say that God is OMNISCIENT or ALL-KNOWING meaning that God knows everything all the time, past, present, and future. But is this SOUND Biblical teaching? Before we actually begin this study in God’s word, I want to make myself perfectly clear that I believe in the SOVEREIGNTY of Almighty God. But I do NOT believe is the TYPE of the Sovereignty of God that teaches that God ordained EVERYTHING that happens and nothing happens that happens, that God did NOT ordain to happen. Does the TRUE Gospel of Jesus Christ teach that EVERYONE will eventually be saved? In other words, did any of the disciples of Jesus preach a type of gospel that IF you do not believe now in this present world then do not worry because God will eventually save you? That is NOT the TRUE Gospel that we are CALLED to preach. Does the TRUE Gospel of Jesus Christ teach that God will save ONLY those people that he has PREDESTINED to be saved? And IF you are NOT one of the chosen FEW then you can NOT be saved! Sorry about that, but come on and believe in Jesus anyway because you MIGHT be one of the chosen people to be saved. Also, you might want to know that God has ordained EVERY EVIL thing that happens. Hope that is alright with you. Chances are God predestined you to hell anyway because MOST people God predestines to be lost. That is NOT the TRUE Gospel that we are CALLED to preach. The first false gospel is TOO good of good news. And the second false gospel is not good news to anyone. The TRUE Gospel of Jesus Christ is to be preached to EVERYONE giving them the GOOD NEWS that WHOSOEVER BELIEVES in Jesus might be saved. So this study is to show the sound Biblical Sovereignty of God. And if the Bible ITSELF shows us that God did NOT ordain EVERYTHING that happens by showing that God is NOT all-knowing, as in, God knowing everything BEFORE it happens then you can see that God is LIMITED in a GOOD way. For you see, IF SO BE, that God is completely in total control of everything that happens then that would make God RESPONSIBLE for every EVIL thing that happens. And that is NOT the God of the Bible. Let us now begins this study in God’s word by reading one of the main verses used to support that God is all-knowing and that God knows EVERYTHING before it happens. Please read Isaiah 46:10. “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:” Now, it is absolutely true that God knows everything that he has PROPHESIED to BE because God WATCHES OVER his word to PERFORM it. Please read Ezekiel 12:25. “For I am the LORD: I will SPEAK, and THE WORD that I shall SPEAK shall come to pass; IT (The SPOKE words of PROPHECY) shall be no more prolonged: for in your days, O rebellious house, WILL I say THE WORD, and will PERFORM IT, says the Lord GOD.” And Jeremiah 1:12 teaches us that God HASTENS or WATCHES over his word to PERFORM it. Jeremiah 1:12. “Then said the LORD unto me, You have well seen: for (Or because) I will hasten my word to perform it.” The Hebrew word translated in the King James Bible as hasten also mean to WATCH over his word. But do these verses mean that God has spoken EVERYTHING that HAPPENS and then PERFORMED every evil thing that happens? In other words, was EVERYTHING PROPHESIED or pre-ordained by God to happen? NO! Of course not! ONLY what God has prophesied that is WRITTEN in the Scriptures is ordained by God. And everything WRITTEN in the Scriptures that God PROPHESIED to happen, then THAT God most certainly KNOWS before it comes to pass because God SPOKE the END from the BEGINNING. The end of WHAT? The end of the PROMISES and JUDGMENTS. Please read Genesis 26:3. “Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you, and will bless you; for unto you, and unto your seed, I will give all these countries, and I will PERFORM the OATH (Or the PROMISE) which I sware unto Abraham your father;” Also, read Isaiah 9:7. “Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will PERFORM THIS.” Psa 119:106. “I have SWORN, and I will PERFORM IT, that I will keep your righteous judgments.” 2 Thessalonians 1:6. “Seeing it is a RIGHTEOUS thing with God to RECOMPENSE tribulation to them that trouble you;” Another verse of Scripture that is used by those who teach that God knows EVERYTHING past present and future BEFORE it happens is 1 John 3:20. Please read 1 John 3:20. “For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.” Now I was taught by my Christian mentor that when reading and studying the Bible we MUST interpret every verse IN its CONTEXT lest we might interpret some verse INCORRECTLY and that one error of interpretation of that verse leads to other error of interpretation. So then, CONTEXT in 1 John 3:20 is about our HEART condemning us. So let us COMPARE Scripture with Scripture by looking at other verses about the HEART. Please read Chronicles 28:9. “And you, Solomon my son, know you the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: FOR (Or BECAUSE) the LORD SEARCHES all hearts, and understands all the imaginations of the thoughts: if you seek him, he will be found of you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.” Also, in 1 John 3:20 the English word “THINGS” is NOT in the original text. And since the CONTEXT is about the HEART of the BELIEVER then John could have INTENDED his words to mean that God knows the HEARTS of the ALL of WHOSOEVER BELIEVE. There is nothing in the CONTEXT that even hints that John is teaching about an ALL-KNOWING God who knows everything BEFORE it happens. That meaning must be read INTO this verse. Now the questions become. #1. IF SO BE that God already knew all things past, present, and future, then WHY does God SEARCH ALL hearts? #2. IF SO BE that God already knew all things past, present, and future, then WHY does God WATCH over his word of prophecy to make sure it comes to pass? The Bible ITSELF teaches us that the word of God is the SWORD of the Spirit in Ephesians 6:12. And in Hebrews 14 we learn that the word of God is able to divide asunder the soul and spirit of man to KNOW the INTENTS of the HEART. Let us read a couple more verses where the Holy Spirit SEARCHES the HEARTS of all men TO KNOW those who are HIS. Proverbs 20:27. “The spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, SEARCHING all the inward parts of the belly.” Why would God SEARCH for what he already supposedly knows? 2 Timothy 2:19.
“Nevertheless the foundation of God stands sure, having this seal, The Lord KNOWS them that are HIS. And, Let every one that names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” God knows our heart because God’s Spirit SEARCHES our heart and that is HOW God knows who are his and who are not his. Romans 8:26. “Likewise the Spirit also helps our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27. And he that SEARCHES the hearts KNOWS what is the mind of the Spirit, (Or more correctly “spirit” with a lower case “s” because it is the Holy Spirit who is doing the SEARCHING of the hearts of Christians in order to KNOW the mind of the spirit on man) because he makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.” So then 1 John 3:5 is actually saying that God knows all the things of the HEARTS that he SEARCHES and NOT everything past, present, and future BEFORE it happens. Think about a LOVING God KNOWING in advance of a terrible tragedy that is about to happen where God KNOWS that thousands of lives of men women and innocent small children and babies will be killed. Think about an all-powerful God who is in COMPLETE CONTROL of every situation who could PREVENT that terrible tragedy from happening but he does nothing except watch it happen because it is his PLEASURE. That is NOT the God of the Holy Bible. The God of the Bible is at WAR with a strong and wise ENEMY. So God is NOT in complete control of everything that happens as Calvinist and Reformed Theology Christians WRONGLY teach. Now if YOU want to INTERPRET Scriptures to mean that God is to be BLAMED for EVERYTHING That happens then that will be between YOU and God on the Day of Judgment. But to ME, the Bible ITSELF teaches us that God takes NO PLEASURE even in the death of the WICKED let alone the death of innocent babies and small children that his ENEMY kills and then places the BLAME on God. Please read Ezekiel 18:32. “For I have NO PLEASURE in the death of him that dies, says the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live you.” Now, obviously, God is speaking about the SECOND death in the lake of fire here in this verse but how many hundreds of people die physically every day in tragedies and in other ways being oppressed by the DEVIL that are LOST. How could God ever take pleasure in their physical death when he knows from his spoken word of prophecy that he did indeed ordain that no person has any HOPE of being saved AFTER they DIE physically? If you are a Christian that believes that EVERYONE will eventually be saved then I IMPLORE you to read all the studies under the heading >>>WILL EVERYONE BE SAVED?<<< But for now, let us continue this study to learn the sound Biblical answer to the question, “Is God ALL-KNOWING?” And in the remainder of this study, we will also be looking at some verses that seem to be teaching us that God is NOT OMNIPRESENT or present everywhere at the same time. Is God EVERYWHERE? What does the Bible ITSELF teach us? Let us look at some verses that clearly teach us where God IS. Psalm 11:4. “The LORD is IN his holy temple, the LORD'S throne is IN heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men.” Isaiah 66:1. “Thus says the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that you build unto me? And where is the place of my rest?” So then, Yahweh, the Father is IN heaven sitting on his throne which teaches us that at least a PART of God that sits on the THRONE is IN heaven. With that is mind lets us look at some verses that teache us that God CAME DOWN from heaven TO SEE IF what he was hearing what true. Now whether God HIMSELF actually came down or whether God SENT one of his angels to see what was going on. The point is that if so be that God already knows everything past, present, and future then why did God come down TO SEE. If God is everywhere at the same time then even if God does not know everything in the future then he would have certainly known after it happened. And God would not have had to come down from heaven to SEE. My point is that God did not know everything that was taking place at the tower of Babel and that is why God or an angel of God came down TO SEE. Please read Genesis 11:5. “And the LORD came down TO SEE the city and the tower, which the children of men were building.” Also, read Genesis 18:20,21. “And the LORD said, BECAUSE the CRY of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; 21. I will GO DOWN now, and SEE WHETHER they have done altogether according to the CRY of it, which is COME unto me; and IF not, I WILL KNOW.” Now, how can an OMNISCIENT, and an OMNIPRESENT God NOT know something UNTIL he comes DOWN out of heaven to SEE WHETHER or not what he heard is true or not true if he was already there and he knows everything past, present, and future, BEFORE it happens? Psalm 14:2. “The LORD looked DOWN FROM heaven upon the children of men, TO SEE IF there were any that did understand, and seek God.” Again, verses like these do not FIT the Christians Orthodox view of an Omnipresent and an all-knowing God who knows everything past, present, and future, BEFORE it happens. Now, I believe that God is SPIRIT and that God created everything out from Spirit or out from himself. So in THAT sense, God is CONNECTED to all living things. And by way of that connect of Spirit giving LIFE to everything then God would certainly KNOW the very moment that his LIFE departed from a sparrow when it falls dead from the sky to the ground Matthew 10:29. “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. 30. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31. Fear you not therefore, you are of more value than many sparrows.” I think that sometimes Christians read into verses things that are not there. Certainly, God created us and he knows the number of hairs on every head. But does that mean that God ordained some people to go bald? Does God keep track of every hair that falls out of a person's head? Does God know the numbers of hairs that will fall out BEFORE they fall out? Or was this parable simply INTENDED to teach us that human beings are more valuable than a sparrow? The context is about teaching us to NOT FEARING death. Particularly, to not fear those who persecute you and desire to kill you for the Gospel’s sake because they cannot kill your SOUL. Is the Lord everywhere? Is the Lord responsible for everything, as in, God CAUSES everything the happen that happens, as some Christians teach? I would have to say that the Scriptures themselves say NO. 1 Kings 19:11. “And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was NOT IN the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was NOT IN the earthquake: 12. And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was NOT IN the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.” Was God in the storm that Jesus calmed? In other words, did Almighty God CAUSE the storm that Jesus calmed? To me, if so be that God causes all storms and God gave Jesus power to calm the storm that he caused, then God’s kingdom would be DIVIDED against itself. For you see. Jesus was falsely accused of healing the sick by the power of Satan. And Jesus answered their false accusation that if Satan casts out Satan then his kingdom is divided and NO kingdom that is divided shall stand. So then, if so be that God is the CAUSE of all sickness and disease and God heals even one person then God’s kingdom is divided. The mere fact that Jesus said if Satan heals by his own power proves that Satan is the CAUSE of sickness and NOT God ordained everything that happens. Acts 10:38 teaches us that it is SATAN who oppresses people with sickness and disease, birth defects, and even accidents. Jesus healed by the power of God all those who were oppressed by the DEVIL and NOT by God as some Christians CLAIM by saying that God ordained everything that happens. Now, to me, if God truly knows everything that happens BEFORE it happns then it would be IMPOSSIBLE of God to be SURPRISED or ASTONISHED when something happens because he supposedly already knew that it would happen before it happened. Yet it GRIEVED God and REPENTED God that he made man on the earth. Genesis 6:6,7. “And it REPENTED the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it GRIEVED him at his heart. 7. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it REPENTS me that I have made them.” Surely being GRIEVED and REPENTIVE for something you did is NOT a PLEASURE. So God doing ALL his PLEASURE does NOT mean that it was God’s WILL to destroy all the wicked during the flood of Noah. Something happened that was NOT planned by God to happen. God’s ENEMY may have won that battle but God found a righteous man that he kept alive to replenish the earth to start over. Could God have PREVENTED all that evil in the day of Noah by simply destroying Satan right from the start? I believe that God could have destroyed Satan and one-third of the angels that followed Lucifer to rebel before he ever created mankind. But then, all the GOOD angels would have always wondered, WHAT IF Lucifer was right? WHAT IF God did, indeed, create Lucifer flawed? So to solve that problem of another future rebellion, God devised a PLAN that he kept SECRET of his enemy Satan. Now, WHY would an all-powerful, all-knowing, Omnipresent God need to keep anything secret from his enemy, Satan? Perhaps, the answer is that while God is God, he is NOT all-knowing and Omnipresent as some Christians teach. And God LIMITS himself so that he is always found to be a JUST and FAITHFUL God who can ALWAYS be TRUSTED. God is a God who never lies or ABUSES his mighty power. God is a JUST God. So then, would it be a righteous thing for God to LIE when God said in his word that he is not a man that he should lie and that it is impossible for God to lie? And would not God breaking his own word be a lie? So since God ORDAINED punishment for breaking his laws it would be a lie if God did not do what he prophesied to do. And if God says that he takes NO pleasure in the death of the wicked and God also says that he will do ALL his pleasure then that means that God could NOT have ORDAINED Adam to commit sin. Obviously, God knowing his ENEMY then God would have known that his enemy does not fight with honor. So God devised a plan of salvation IF Adam ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil BEFORE Adam ate from the tree of eternal life. But then it GRIEVED God that he ever created man a little LOWER than the angels. So God ADDED the Law of Moses UNTIL he could reveal his Messiah. And had Satan KNOWN God's full plan of salvation then Satan would have NEVER had crucified God’s Messiah. But God knew his enemy enough to KEEP his plan of salvation a SECRET. Imagine two opposing sides being at WAR with each other. During WAR things constantly change so there is the need to think fast and make adjustments in your plan. God could have ended Satan right there at the cross as well. But God chose long before the cross to replace Satan and all the fallen angels with a new creation of exalted humans that will NEVER rebel against God. God KNEW that he will win this war and that he will be justified to destroy Lucifer and the one-third of the angels that fell. So God prophesied his new creation to be created in his firstborn Son. So then, we have two OPTIONS. Option #1. God might have devised his whole plan of salvation before he ever spoke one prophecy. Option #2. God might have improvised all along the way to add prophecies to his basic plan of clearing his name of being BLAMED unjustly for creating Lucifer to rebel against him. Without God clearing his name God would be seen in the eyes of all the good angels as being unjust if he destroyed Satan and the fallen angels WITHOUT a TRIAL. We may never know which option is actually correct was until we receive eternal life in the world to come and by then it will not matter. My main point of this whole study is to get you to think for YOURSELF. Is the type of gospel that teaches unsaved people that God himself ORDAINED everything EVIL that happens a gospel of GOOD NEWS? Is the type of gospel where God will eventually save mass murders who never once in their entire life showed any remorse for the evil works good news to the families that had children and loved ones that were murdered by those unrepentant murderers? Then why continue to preach what makes God out to be a LIAR? God says many times in his word that the wicked will be DESTROYED. And yet some Christians preach a FALSE gospel that says God will eventually save ALL the wicked INCLUDING Satan and the fallen angels. And that type of gospel makes God sound like a LIAR. And then other Christians preach a type of gospel that Jesus did NOT die on the cross for EVERYONE in the entire world. But rathe Jesus dies only for the ELECT. And that type of FASLE gospel also makes God sound like a LIAR. For you see, there are MANY verses in the Bible that clearly teach us the WHOSOEVER BELIEVE will be saved. It makes no sense whatsoever to say, For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son for the ELECT ONLY so that whosoever of the ELECT should not perish but have eternal life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the ELECT but that the ELECT is saved through him. And whosoever of the ELECT who believe in him is NOT condemned BUT whosoever of the ELECT that does NOT believe is condemned ALREADY because whosever of the ELECT did NOT BELIEVE in the name of the Son of God. For further study one WHY Calvinism is NOT Biblical please read all the studies under the heading >>>IS CALVINISM BIBLICAL?<<< And for further study on WHY everyone will NOT eventually be saved please read all the studies under the heading >>>WILL EVERYONE BE SAVED?<<< And for the TRUE Gospel of Jesus Christ please read the study “WHAT IS THE TRUE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST?” Thanks for reading and my God bless you richly as you continue to seek the TRUTH of the WHOLE word of Almighty God. Your brother in our Lord Jesus Christ, Brother Mark. RETURN TO HOMEPAGE AT |
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