AS FAR AS I CAN SEE

As far as you can see

Genesis 13:14-15 Abram Moves to Hebron After Lot had left, the Lord said to Abram, “From where you are, look carefully in all directions. I am going to give you and your descendants all the land that you see, and it will be yours forever.

Proverbs 4:23 Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.

1 Thessalonians 5:24 He who calls you will do it, because he is faithful.

Numbers 23:19 God is not like people, who lie; He is not a human who changes his mind. Whatever he promises, he does; He speaks, and it is done.

Jeremiah 1:9 Then the Lord reached out, touched my lips, and said to me, “Listen, I am giving you the words you must speak.

Successful/unsuccessful people

Hisuccessful people vs unsuccessful people

1. Successful people embrace change; unsuccessful people fear it
“Embracing change is one of the hardest things a person can do,”
With the world moving fast and technology accelerating at a rapid speed, it's imperative that we embrace these changes and adapt, rather than fear, deny, or hide from them. Successful people are able to do just that.

2. Successful people talk about ideas; unsuccessful people talk about people
Instead of gossiping about people, which gets you nowhere, successful people discuss ideas.
“Sharing ideas with others will only make them better,”

3. Successful people accept responsibility for their failures; unsuccessful people blame others
Truly successful leaders and businesspeople experience ups and downs in their lives and careers, but they always accept responsibility for their failures. Blaming others solves nothing: “It just puts other people down and absolutely no good comes from it.”

4. Successful people give others all the credit for their victories; unsuccessful people take all the credit from others
Letting people have their moments to shine motivates them to work harder and, consequently, makes you look better as a leader or teammate.

5. Successful people want others to succeed; unsuccessful people secretly hope others fail
“When you're in an organisation with a group of people, in order to be successful, you all have to be successful."
That's why the most successful people don't wish for their demise — they want to see their coworkers succeed and grow.

6. Successful people continuously learn; unsuccessful people fly by the seat of their pants
The only way to grow as a person, professional, and leader is to never stop learning.
“You can be a step above your competition and become more flexible because you know more." If you just fly by the seat of your pants, you could be passing up opportunities that prevent you from learning (and growing!).”

7. Successful people ask how they can help others; unsuccessful people ask how they can help themselves
The best question you can ask when you first meet an influential person isn't “How can you help me?” but “How can I help you?”
Of course, you should be willing and able to help the person if they take you up on your offer. But regardless of whether they accept or decline, simply offering your assistance makes people feel warmer toward you, and makes them more inclined to help you when you need it.

8. Successful people take a chance and ask for what they want; unsuccessful people are afraid of failure
“Rejection and failure are two of the most paralysing fears,” and they often prevent people from asking for what they really want.

“If we don't ask for what we want we think on some level that we can't fail; we can't get rejected. But in reality we're almost guaranteed that we're going to fail because we're not going to get what we want.”

If you want to be successful, your mantra should be something like “Embrace the fear of no; then ask for the yes.”

9. Successful people are always looking to better understand themselves; unsuccessful people don't care about introspection
“The first step in learning how to better influence others to get what you want in your career and in life, is to understand yourself,”

Specifically, you should understand your unconscious motivations, what shifts your mood, and how you best interact with others.

10. Successful people listen first and never stop listening; unsuccessful people talk too much
The single most important and underrated skill in business, social media, and life in general is listening.

It's hard to do, because when we get excited about our ideas, all we want to do is talk about them. But the less we talk, the easier it is to persuade other people to like those ideas — and to like us.

“Listening and letting people talk is key to winning them over in life, in business, and in all human relationships.”

11. Successful people are vulnerable and transparent; unsuccessful people are protected and secretive
We learn from an early age that crying, and showing emotion in general, is a sign of weakness.

As it turns out, sincerely powerful emotions — especially those powerful enough to cause tears — are quite influential in connecting with other people. If you can get yourself to experience a level of vulnerability with someone to the point where you're moved to tears, you will be able to relate to that person — and he or she can relate to you — on a much deeper level.

12. Successful people keep a positive attitude; unsuccessful people get negative too often
A positive attitude is contagious, especially when it comes from a leader.

At a conference he attended more than a decade ago, one of the speakers recommended that people answer “Fantastic!” instead of something lukewarm like “fine” when someone asks, “How are you?”

Kerpen writes that the speaker “claimed that by using this word, you'll attract whoever you're talking to and make that person want to be around you, because no matter how anyone else is feeling, fantastic is probably better, and who wouldn't want to feel fantastic?”

13. Successful people are committed to gratitude and acts of kindness; unsuccessful people put themselves first
“The secret to getting everything you want at work and in life is treating people well, not trying to get everything you want.”

In other words, nice guys finish first.
------The Independent

Let's talk..............
What are your thoughts on this?

Jesus is he God

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Bible verses that show Jesus is Divine

by Matt Slick

Following are verses used to show that Jesus isGod in flesh. The Scriptures used here are from the New American Standard Bible.

John 1:1, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."John 1:14, "And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth."John 5:18, "For this cause therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God."John 8:24, "I said therefore to you, that you shall die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you shall die in your sins."Note: In the Greek, "He" is not there.John 8:58, "Jesus said to them, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.'"Exodus 3:14, "And God said to Moses, 'I AM WHO I AM'; and He said, Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’"John 10:30-33, "I and the Father are one." 31 The Jews took up stones again to stone Him. 32 Jesus answered them, "I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?" 33 The Jews answered Him, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God."John 20:28, "Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!"Col. 2:9, "For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form."Phil. 2:5-11, "Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."Heb. 1:8, "But of the Son He says, "Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever, and the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom."Quoted from Psalm 45:6, "Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of uprightness is the scepter of Thy kingdom."

Jesus is worshipped, Jesus said to worship God only, yet He receives worship.

Matt. 4:10, "Then Jesus said to him, "Begone, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.'"Matt. 2:2, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?  For we saw His star in the east, and have come to worship Him."Matt. 2:11, "And they came into the house and saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell down and worshiped Him; and opening their treasures they presented to Him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh."Matt. 14:33, "And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, "You are certainly God’s Son!"Matt. 28:9, "And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them.  And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him."John 9:35-38, "Jesus heard that they had put him out; and finding him, He said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" 36 He answered and said, "And who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?" 37 Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him, and He is the one who is talking with you." 38 And he said, "Lord, I believe." And he worshiped Him."Heb. 1:6, "And when He again brings the first-born into the world, He says, 'And let all the angels of God worship Him.'"

Jesus is prayed to

Acts 7:55-60, "But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; 56 and he said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." 57 But they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears, and they rushed upon him with one impulse. 58 And when they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him, and the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And they went on stoning Stephen as he called upon the Lord and said, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!" 60 And falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" And having said this, he fell asleep."1 Cor. 1:1-2, "Paul, called as an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, 2 to the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours." (The phrase, "to call upon the name of the Lord," is a phrase used to designate prayer).1 Kings 18:24, "Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord, and the God who answers by fire, He is God."  And all the people answered and said, "That is a good idea."Zech. 13:9, "And I will bring the third part through the fire, refine them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested.  They will call on My name, and I will answer them; I will say, ‘They are My people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’"Rom. 10:13-14, "for 'whoever will call upon the name of the Lord' will be saved." 14 How then shall they call upon Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard?" (Paul is speaking of calling upon Jesus. The phrase, "Call upon the name of the Lord," is a quote from Joel 2:32).Joel 2:32, "And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call." (LORD here is YHWH, the name of God as revealed in Exodus 3:14. Therefore, this quote, dealing with God Himself is attributed to Jesus).

First and Last

Isaiah 44:6, "Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: ‘I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides Me."Rev. 1:17-18, "Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, 18 and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades."

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The Holy Spirit is God

Tim Staples

April 4, 2014 | 10 comments

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The third person of the Blessed Trinity, the Holy Spirit, is sometimes referred to as “the forgotten” member of the godhead. He is, no doubt, the least spoken of among the three persons of God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. It is; therefore, no surprise to find many Catholics ill-equipped to deal with some of the more notable errors concerning he who is “the Lord and giver of life.” Thus, studying the person and nature of the Holy Spirit, though sometimes neglected, is crucial for us as Catholic apologists and as Catholics in general.

The most common attacks on Catholic belief concerning the Holy Spirit generally come from quasi-Christian sects such as the Iglesia Ni Cristo, Jehovah’s Witnesses and others who deny the central mystery of the Christian faith—the Trinity. Both the personhood as well as the divinity of the Holy Spirit are rejected by these groups. The Holy Spirit is spoken of as a “force,” or as “power” emanating from God; rather than as God himself. For the Catholic, then, we must be able to respond to these two key misunderstandings concerning the Holy Spirit. 1. He is a person. 2. He is God.

A Personal Message from the Spirit of God

One of the first reasons given for denying the divine nature of the Holy Spirit is often to point out the fact that the Greek word for “spirit” (pneuma) is neuter. John 14:26, for example, refers to the Spirit as to pneuma to hagion (the Holy Spirit). This is, in fact, neuter. While the Father and the Son are clearly personal terms, and therefore, most will see them revealed to be persons, “spirit,” being neuter, it is claimed, indicates we are dealing with an impersonal force rather than a person.

While it is a fact that “spirit” in Greek is a neuter term, this does not necessarily mean the Holy Spirit is impersonal. Nouns in Greek are assigned gender as they are in many languages. In Latin and the modern romance languages this is the case as well. For example, the Latin word for lance islancea which is feminine. This does not mean that lances or daggers are actually female and personal! The same can be said for Greek words such as kardia, which means, “heart.” The fact that this Greek word is feminine does not indicate hearts to be female and personal. Nor does the fact that a word like baros, Greek for arrow, which is neuter, indicate arrows to be impersonal forces. Words are simply assigned gender in these languages.

Further, if being referred to as “spirit” indicates the third person of the Blessed Trinity is impersonal, then both angels and God the Father would have to be “forces” rather than persons as well. In John 4:24, Jesus says “God is spirit (Gr. – pneuma) and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” And in Hebrews 1:14angels are referred to as “ministering spirits(Gr. – pneumata) sent forth to serve, for the sake of those who are to obtain salvation.” Thus, the key here is to examine the context and usage of a word in Scripture, rather than just its “gender,” in order to determine whether we are dealing with a person, a force, or perhaps just an arrow.

Speaking of the importance of context, the truth is, the very verse of Scripture often used to "prove" the Holy Spirit to be an impersonal force actually demonstrates the Holy 
Spirit to be both personal and masculine when examined more fully. John 14:26 in its entirety actually says:

But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he willteach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

There are three key points to be made here.

1. "The Counselor" is ho paracleto in Greek which is masculine, not neuter.

2. When the text says he will teach you all things the demonstrative pronoun (Gr. ekeinos) is used in the masculine singular. This is very significant because the inspired author could have used the neuter ekeino, but he did not. If the Holy Spirit were an impersonal force, the inspired author would not refer to “it” as a “he.”

3. Notice what the Holy Spirit does.Jesus says he will both teach and remindus “all that [he has] said to [us].” Action follows being. One cannot "teach" and "remind" if one does not have the intellectual powers unique to rational persons that enable one to do so! The Holy Spirit is here clearly revealed to be a person.

Indeed, the Holy Spirit is referred to in personal terms by our Lord throughout the New Testament. If we only consider John chapters 14, 15 and 16, the evidence is overwhelming. This is not to mention the abundance of examples we could cite throughout the Scriptures, both Old (in seed form) and New Testaments. Here are some more examples to add to John 14:26 already mentioned.

In John 14:16-17, Jesus says,

And I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, to be with you for ever, even the Spirit of truth, who the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him; you know him, for he dwells with you, and will be in you (emphasis added).

 In John 15:26, Jesus says,

But when the Counselor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of Truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness to me; and you also are witnesses, because you have been with me from the beginning (emphasis added).

And in John 16:7-13, Jesus makes it very plain,

Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send himto you. And when he comes, he will convince the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment; of sin, because they do not believe in me; of righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, hewill guide into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and hewill declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you (emphasis added).

The Holy Spirit is clearly personal. He "convinces of sin," "teaches" the truth, "speaks," "declares things that are to come," etc. There is no doubt as to the person of the Holy Spirit in these texts.

How to “Pour Out” a Person in One Easy Step

One last obstacle for some who deny the personhood of the Holy Spirit is found inActs 2:14-18. In this text, St. Peter describes the power of God being manifested on the day of Pentecost quoting Joel 2:28:

But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them, "Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day; but this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 

And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; yea, and on my menservants and my maidservants in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy."

The question is often asked, “How can youpour out a person? Is this not proof the Holy Spirit is a force rather than a person?” The answer is a resounding “no!” ConsiderPsalm 22. This is a messianic Psalm referring to our Lord’s passion. But notice how it describes our Lord in verse 15: “I am poured out like water…” Would we say Jesus is just a force and not a person because he is “poured out” in this verse? Of course not! So it goes with the Holy Spirit. We do not deny the plain verses of Scripture indicating his person because he is described as being “poured out” in Acts 2:17.

The Holy Spirit is Omniscient

There is one key phrase from John 16, cited above, that we should examine more fully when considering the truth that the Holy Spirit is revealed to be not only a person, but divine—God himself. Verse 13 tells us that the Holy Spirit “will guide [us] into all truth.” We have a hint here of what we see even more plainly in texts like I Corinthians 2:11: the Scripture indicates the Holy Spirit is omniscient, a quality that God alone possesses or even has the capability to possess.

For what person knows a man’s thoughts except the spirit of the man which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

The reason “no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God” is because it would require infinite power to be able to comprehend the thoughts of God which are infinite. Romans 11:33-34 tells us:

O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! "For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?"

The fact that the Holy Spirit of God fully comprehends the thoughts of God proves beyond a reasonable doubt that he is, in fact, God.

The Lord and Giver of Life

Among the manifold texts of Scripture revealing the Holy Spirit to be God, St. Thomas Aquinas comments on a key verse most pass over: I Cor. 6:19

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God?

According to The Summa Theologiae, Part I, Q. 27, Art. 1, St. Thomas says it is the prerogative of God, and God alone, to have a temple; therefore the Holy Spirit is here revealed to be God, and our bodies are revealed to be his temple.

Acts 5:1-4:

But a man named Anani'as with his wife Sapphi'ra sold a piece of property, and with his wife's knowledge he kept back some of the proceeds, and brought only a part and laid it at the apostle's feet. But Peter said, "Anani'as, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the proceeds of the land? ... How is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God."

St. Peter is remarkably clear here that lying to the Holy Spirit is identical to lying to God. The Holy Spirit is once again revealed to be God. 

Perhaps the most plain and unmistakable texts demonstrating the divinity of the Holy Spirit are found in Hebrews. First, we’ll examine Hebrews 3:7-10:

Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, when you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness, where your fathers put me to the test and saw my works for forty years. Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, “They always go astray in their hearts; they have not known my ways (emphasis added).”

Notice the Holy Spirit is once again revealed to be synonymous with God himself. InHebrews 10:15-17, the reference is even clearer:

And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will putmy laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,” then he adds, “I will remember their sins and their misdeeds no more” (emphasis added).

The Holy Spirit is revealed here to be both a person and divine. He is depicted as “bear[ing] witness,” “establish[ing] a covenant”, is referred to as “the Lord”, “puts [his] laws on [our] hearts” and even forgives sins. Every Catholic should know that when they recite the Nicene Creed every Sunday at Mass, they are clearly and concisely professing just what we see here in Scripture: The Holy Spirit truly is “the Lord and Giver of Life.”  

If you enjoyed this, and would like to learn more, click here.

 

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Tim Staples is Director of Apologetics and Evangelization here at Catholic Answers, but he was not always Catholic. Tim was raised a Southern Baptist. Although he fell away from the faith of his childhood, Tim came back to faith in Christ during his late teen years through the witness of Christian...

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Comments by Catholic.com Members

#1  Eric Vanderburg - Yukon, Oklahoma

Knock it off Tim! You're articles are putting me in a position where I'm going to be forced to purchase all your books. Lol. Great job and keep up the good work.

God Bless

April 5, 2014 at 4:16 pm PST

#2  okorie john - aninri, Enugu

I love coming here every day,just to be more rooted in catholic faith. Keep the good work on my dear people in Christ and in Faith.

April 6, 2014 at 11:45 am PST

#3  Salonsar War - Shillong, Meghalaya

Tim, in a dialogue with a Jehovah's Witness (JW) friend of mine, I was challenged with a few questions regarding the Holy Spirit.
Here are two which I'm hoping you or anyone reading this can throw some light on:
1. Wisdom is referred to as 'she' and 'her' in Proverbs 1:20, 4:6, 9:1 and 14:33. That's their (JW's) answer to Jesus using a personal term ('he', 'him') to the Holy Spirit. Wisdom is not a person, so it follows that the Holy Spirit is also not a person. That's the reasoning they use.
2. Nowhere in the Bible did anyone worship the Holy Spirit nor are we asked to--so the Holy Spirit can not be God. That's another reasoning.

April 11, 2014 at 2:41 am PST

#4  Eric Vanderburg - Yukon, Oklahoma

Hey Salonsar,

For question one, I see failure on your friends part to recognize the literary genre of Proverbs. Read the first chapter of Proverbs and its pretty clear it's a different genre than the gospels.

The second question is kind of a catch 22 where it seems your JW friend is being inconsistent. I'd say there are plenty of examples where individuals worshiped Jesus, yet JWs still deny his divinity.

That's just my initial thoughts. I'm fairly certain Mr. Staples can provide more. Be careful in your discussions with your friend. In my experience JWs are the most incoherently coherent (or coherently incoherent) I've come across.

April 11, 2014 at 5:07 am PST

#5  Tim Staples - El Cajon, California - Catholic Answers Blogger

Salonsar,
Eric is correct. Proverbs 1 tells you it is an "instruction in wise dealing, righteousness, justice, and equity" (Prov. 1:3), and in that context "Wisdom cries aloud in the street..." (1:20...) This is quite different than, say, an historical narrative in Acts 13:2: "While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.'"
To add to what Mark said, we have an enormous number of Scripture verses that say the people worshiped the Holy Spirit. Just look at every verse that says words to the effect of, "While they were worshiping the Lord..." and it does not single out a particular person in the Holy Trinity, as we see in Acts 13:2. The Holy Spirit is the Lord; therefore, they are worshipping the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the one true God. As II Cor. 2Cor.3:17 says it, "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom."

April 13, 2014 at 7:27 pm PST

#6  Salonsar War - Shillong, Meghalaya

Eric and Tim, thanks a lot for your insights. I will write them down before my next talk with my JW friend. That's what I have learnt if you want to discuss the Bible with a JW. You gotta be ready. I find it easier to convince an atheist (where you talk reason, logic and rationale) than a JW where you need to memorise Bible verses coz they will surely dish out verses from their Bible (the New World Translation, which is not another version, but a perversion of God's Word)
God Bless.

April 14, 2014 at 1:25 am PST

#7  david pruit - dallas, Texas

Tim, I wonder how this can be used in discussions with Open Theists, and what other areas in the Bible and our Tradition point to God's foreknowledge, timelessness, and omniscience?
http://www.theopedia.com/Open_theism

July 12, 2014 at 10:52 am PST

#8  Tim Staples - El Cajon, California - Catholic Answers Blogger

David,
Start with the Catechism. Paragraphs 598ff deal with Predestination and foreknowledge, but are there more specific questions you have in mind?

July 12, 2014 at 5:29 pm PST

#9  david pruit - dallas, Texas

Those passages in the CCC do help, I had not found them yet, thank you.

I guess more specifically, I'm trying to relate to a relative (my sister) who is quite taken up with open theism and believes God had backup plans rather than exhaustive foreknowledge (she is an evangelical and the rest of my family has a baptist background so they are battling this out while I'm trying to make sense from a Catholic perspective). So for instance, Christ coming to earth to be our sacrifice was a back-up plan that was put into action because sin did enter into human nature as a curse. God didn't plan for humans to become sinners, but He took the risk by creating free will humans. This doesn't mean that He failed or was wrong. He desired to create man, but knew there was potential for sin. He constantly "adapts" to our choices, but always has "the answer" in terms of a backup plan for every choice we make. So, he is in a sense "ever learning and ever creating".

The claim is that God is learning, and for God to be able to know something new means that the exhaustive future is not set by God, or anyone because it has not come to pass (God is not present "outside of time"). There are times in the Bible when God tests a person to learn what they will do and to learn more about them and their heart. They say this doesn't limit God at all. God can very well predict what a person will do because He's been observing them since they were created and knows them, but that doesn't mean He sees into the future at what they are doing at a later time.
God doesn't change His mind willy nilly after we make a good or bad choice. Rather, He is alive and personal and He certainly reacts to what we do. In the Bible, God "changes His mind" and He has throughout history. "Humans and God are molding history as we speak because the future is not written out, rather it is being written out currently and will continue as time goes on, as God goes on, forever".

The main root of this seems to stem from an evangelical shoot that is very anti-calvanist and hence very anti-predeterministic. It's starting to be a bit of an uproar in the evangelical scene, as seen by a recent debate by (calvanist?) James White and (???? Radio christian guy???) Bob Enyart. http://www.aomin.org/aoblog/index.php/2014/07/09/james-white-cross-examines-bob-enyart/

July 12, 2014 at 5:49 pm PST

#10  Tim Staples - El Cajon, California - Catholic Answers Blogger

David,

The key here is to understand that God is "pure act." There is no potency in God, i.e., he cannot be moved from a potential to know something to actually knowing something because he already knows it. He is fully actualized. He can't move from here to there (excluding the Incarnation where God becomes man) in his divine essence because he is already "there."

A rule of thumb is to understand that nothing outside of God can "move" God to act. He causes us, we don't cause him. This does not exclude free will as long as we understand that even our free wills must be "moved" or "aided" by grace.

Most importantly, if God can "learn" then that's not God. That would be a creature.

July 14, 2014 at 11:20 am PST

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