Why did God give the gift of free will to man when He knew exactly what man would do with that gift? Life would have been simpler if we didn’t have the choice of free will, but that would have made us little more than robots.
It is God’s mercy that He didn’t wipe Adam out in the Garden of Eden. That same mercy and grace permits us to make our own choices.
Covenantal God
God is a covenantal God, which requires two parties, each with a free will. You can’t make a covenant with an Ai. A covenant has specific conditions and promises. Yet, God’s covenant would cost the Son of God His life. Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin, Hebrews 9:22.
God has conferred on man the dignity of being able to choose with rational. He could have created robotic people who loved and worshipped Him because they had no other choice. Yet, what value would be that kind of relationship? Only free will allows amazing love, based on God’s holiness, grace and mercy.
He gave those He made in His image the right to either accept or reject His covenant with Him. He gave man the Law, revealing the standard of righteousness between God and man, Exodus 20: 2-17, but it was a standard man could not keep. God then formed a new and everlasting covenant, through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The One who humbled Himself and came to earth as a man, Philippians 2:5-7. It was a covenant between God and God, whereas all previous covenants had been between God and man.
No Covenant
God does not have a covenant with angels, although they have a free will. A third of the angels rebelled against God, Revelation 12:8. They will meet an eternal end of damnation, along with their leader, Satan.
There is no redemption for fallen angels. Neither is there redemption for all who reject God’s great gift of salvation. They will face their day of judgement.
Man’s Arrogance
Man was created to worship the Creator, but man’s rebellion started in the Garden of Eden, where Satan twisted the truth, Genesis 3. Man was tempted to be like God, Genesis 3:5, instead of settling into a deep, loving fellowship that enjoys who God is.
When man arrogantly takes the freedom of choice and sets himself up as a god, things get out of hand. Fallen man puts self on the throne of his heart. Today, every man does what is right in his own eyes as they did in the time of the Judges, Judges 21:25.
Man’s reach for power is said to always be ‘for the common good of all’. Man spends endless amounts of energy forcing others to obey his will. However, “If you tell a lie big enough people will eventually come to believe it”, Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s minister of Enlightenment and Propoganda..
Partnership
God created man that he would work as stewards, in partnership with God, Genesis 2;15. Humans make choices that not only affects their own lives but everything and everyone around them.
Creativity and innovation are all part of having the gift of free will. Yet, man takes that creativity to usurp the authority of a Holy God. AIs are the product of man, but they have no free will, even though they have become an integral part of our daily life. They can process knowledge at a rate no human brain can achieve. As knowledge doubles every 12 hours, AIs are an asset to mankind. AIs are not rewarded for producing what they are programmed to do, and are controlled by what is programmed into them.
Men fear that someday self-determining AIs will be created, but they will be without morality or spirituality. A machine can always only ever be a machine, no matter how clever they become.
Redemption
God knew humans would make wrong decisions, but He gave man the way back to Him through redemption. That redemption is available to all, not just the ones who make right choices, John 3:16. There is no greater love, John 15:13, for God’s mercy is to all, even the darkest, most perverted sinner.
In the time of Noah and his family, only eight persons accepted God’s way of salvation out of around 750 million people. Prior to the flood man lived many hundred years. Methuselah lived to 969 years, so the total population could have been a lot more than is estimated. Noah would have had many brothers and sisters, and family members.
We have nearly eight billion people on earth today. If Jesus Christ came back tonight to claim His own, what percentage would go with Him? The choice is always theirs until that final call.
The Gift of Freewill as a Proving Ground
With our free will we determine what actions we perform throughout our lifetime of living in a proving ground. Our entire life is made up of decisions resulting from our free will and God has given us the right to determine our eternal destination.
Our loyalty is tested again and again, as well-tested faith produces a strength that can be gained no other way. As humans we have the choice to develop morally and spiritually and the right to seek God. Those who learn from their experiences and mistakes, grow in wisdom, developing compassion, empathy and justice. However, there are many who pervert their right of free will for their own egotistical ends.
There are eight promises to the overcomer in the book of Revelation, chapter 2:7,11,27,26. chapter 3:5,12,21 and 21:7. If you look at the rewards from being an overcomer, it draws an impressive picture. There are also special rewards to the overcomer in terms of a Crown of Life, Revelation 2:10, The Incorruptible Crown, 1 Corinthians 9:25; the Crown of Righteousness, 2 Timothy 4:8; the Crown of Glory, 1 Peter 5:4; and the Crown of Rejoicing, Philippians 4:1. Crowns symbolize God-given authority and legitimacy, with the right to wear a crown. They also point to how much God values the overcomer.
AIs Have No Freewill
That God gave man a free will is a wonderment and an indication of the great love God had for us. The gift of free will is the revelation of God’s amazing love, Jeremiah 3:17, in that God desires man turns to Him voluntarily. Many are called, but few are chosen, Matthew 22:14. To be in a covenantal relationship with God is all about the choice of the free will.
Check out other posts at Whispering Encouragement. We are here to inform and encourage. Subscribe for free, so you can keep up to date with topics that interest you.
________________________Whispering Encouragement_______________________
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.