Chosen But Free

In Norman Geisler’s book Chosen But Free, he attempts to tackle what is arguably the most talked about issue in Christian circles. The topic of predestination and free will are constantly discuss in Christian groups and people have different opinions. I believe that this is foolish. I know for certain that I am a Christian and will spend eternity in Heaven, to waste time arguing whether God predestined me is pointless and a waste of time. We, as Christian people, should not be so consumed with wanting to know if God appointed us one of His chosen people or if we came to it out of our own free will. All that should matter to us is that we know He is in our life and we should desire to share the love we feel from him with as many people as we can. The truth is we can never know for certain one way or the other so we should share with all people since we cannot possibly know if they were “chosen.” Having said that, I agree with some of the points Geisler makes in his book. God is all knowing and is everywhere ultimately He knows who is going to choose Him and receive eternal life but we have the free will to get to that conclusion on are own. It is the same with any other aspect of our life. For example, God knows who we will marry from the day we were born, but it is up to us to determine that at the right time. Same with salvation, he knows the exact moment we will be saved when were born but we direct our journey to discovering that salvation.  I believe that God has the foreknowledge of everything that is going to happen to us during our lifetime. I do not however believe that all events in our lives are fixed. Things can change depending on the path that we choose to take. I think of it as there are many roads and God knows where all roads will eventually lead but we have the free will to choose which one of the roads we will take. I do not like how Geisler calls Christians the “elect.” I do not believe that God chooses certain people to believe in Him thereby destining all others to an eternity in hell. If that were the case why would God command us to go out and make disciples in scripture? If all Christians were elected all missionaries are pointless and no Christian should need to witness at all. God commands Christians to be witnesses. If this theory were true God’s command is pointless and we would have to negate a portion of the scripture. And if you do that who is to say that other commands God has given us could also be ignored? It just doesn’t make any sense. I also agree that God cannot possibly be responsible for our sin. He is incapable of associating with evil. He is responsible to no one but Himself and therefore is always in obedience making sin for him nonexistent.

Word Count: 522

Worship in the Church

Worship in the church is something that is discussed frequently. I think people put too much emphasis on what the music aspect of their service is like. In my opinion, we go to church to have an intimate time with God through teachings of the pastor. While music is an important, I do not think a church should be judged just on their music which I feel many people, especially young people, tend to do. If the music takes center stage in a church I think the learning and teaching is put to the wayside and gets lost in the mix. However, I think churches should use a mix of modern songs as well as hymns so that they have a well-rounded approach. Also, I believe that the church should be able to put their input into the music that they would wish to hear. At my church at home the music is a problem with a lot of people who visit. Our worship leader writes his own songs and a lot of people wish they were more modern. But, our pastor in my opinion makes up for anything that may be lacking in the music department. But recently the congregation has been giving him input and its getting better. Worship is different for everyone but I believe that no matter the music a person can get connected to God through song no matter what genre. If there is a problem with music in the church the church could try to add different types of styles to try to draw people into the doors. However, trying to be too showy can causes people to be coming for the wrong reason. All around I think that the music in a church can be a problem for lots of churches. But, I feel like there is a perfect mix of contemporary and modern that can make the music of any church more enjoyable for the people who attend.

Words: 326

Testimony

Ever since I can remember God has been a constant presence in my life. My parents are both Christians and have raised my brothers and me as such. If fact, I do not remember much about the time when I decided to change my life and allow God to be my everything. I was four and do not really think a true change took place for me at that time. It was much later, when I was 13 years old that I truly remember a change taking place. At church, a woman was speaking to a group of girls when I remember thinking that the way I was living was just not acceptable. Before this night, I did not have firm beliefs that I could call my own. I was messing up, lying, cheating, and treated people around me horribly. I remember seeing how sweet and genuine this lady was. I knew it was because she had allowed her life to become consumed with pleasing God above all others. That night, I ask God to become my everything and to create a change in my life. After that night things began to change, not overnight, but steadily I became and am still becoming a woman who’s longing is for Christ above all else.

Word Count: 213