Does Free Will actually exist? Is there a way to tell?

[Godscreated]

Long story short, GC; if god knows how our lives will go, then that means everything has been pre-determined.

That's all I've heard here, if God knows, if God knows, care to use some words other than those to prove your point. God says His desire is for all to be saved, how is that in any way connected to predetermination.

If god is all-powerful, then that means he has absolute power over our lives.

In what world? Just because God is all powerful doesn't necessarily mean He uses that power to control anything or anyone. If God had predetermined everyone's fate, then pray tell why did He find it necessary to give the law. If all human life is predetermined then no one can keep or break the law, they have no choice in the matter. Why send His Messiah, why allow his Son to become a man an die such a terrible death, why would He need to send Him from the comfort of heaven. Why would God through Jesus give us the two greatest commandments of love and tell us if we keep these two the rest will fall into place in our lives. There is choice in all these examples, you haven't given one thing to show how God has predetermined our lives.

If he has absolute power, that means everything we do is by his influence, as if he does not, then he is not all-powerful.

That's the craziest thing I've heard yet, tell me why does He have to exert that power onto us, what rule exist that says he must. Because He doesn't choose to exert His power onto us doesn't mean He doesn't have it. Actually being all powerful means He can restrain from doing so.

In order to be omnipotent, he would have to have power over us. If he has power over us, then that means we have no power over ourselves.

Yet again the same old stuff, God does have power over all mankind that's a given. Through that power He's given us free will, to determine our destiny.

If he is all-knowing, then he knows ahead of time how we will act. If that is the case, that means he knows how his actions will affect us. If he is always present, then that means he always exerts control, because that would mean he is present in everything...including our actions. If he is present in our actions, then that means he is affecting our actions. And if he is affecting our actions, then we do not have free will.

Then why the law, God being all that you yourself have said, then He would know the law would be completely useless a waste of time, being omniscient He wouldn't have given the law. He gave the law to give man choice and show man he could not make the right choices all the time, actually not even close to all the time.

That enough for you?

Even with wings this frog never got off the ground.

Oh, and additionally, if he was all-knowing and yet also allowing us our free will, why did he throw such temper tantrums about the idol-worship and the thing with Sodom and Gomorrah and everything?

Now you're contradicting what you said above, above you said God being omniscient and here your saying He couldn't be omniscient, it can't be both ways, you've a decision to make, ah yes, choice backed yourself into that one.

Also, don't his actions in destroying those cities and people and sending his son to tell people about him count as being DIRECT intervention in our lives? I think the inhabitants of those two cities would certainly think so, given they were terminated by him quite violently and against their free will...

They came under judgment for wrong choices, choices that went to far beyond what God was going to allow. They were judged and condemned by the perfect God of creation. Christ came to intervene on our behalf for our wrong choices and He himself became a choice, we can choose to allow Him to direct our lives or we can choose to direct our own lives. I've done both, I truly have found choosing Christ to be far better.

And if you believe in miracles, that means he is influencing us outside of our own free will.

I was wondering when you were going to get around to saying we have free will, by the way, you like Rhythm need to understand that the words you choose to use are not related to predetermination. Influence isn't even close to having ones life predetermined, actually influence supports free choice. If we are being influenced it is to show us there is another choice we can make.

GC