Book Preview: God All Mighty!

See Blog Post for further details:

http://njkproject.blogspot.com/2009/10/book-preview-god-all-mighty.html

Divine Foreknowledge or Divine Foreplanning?

The topic of the foreknowledge of God has come to be one of the most controversial,
even divisive, theological issues in Christianity. However, like many other Bible topics, the
precise truth as to what the Bible actually, specifically teaches on this topic can be arrived at by
proper exegetical Biblical study. Proper exegesis of course is not reading into a text an outside,
preconceived/supposed meaning, but extracting the meaning provided by the text itself.
Unfortunately, many in the study of this topic, have, presumably, inadvertently, imposed a
preconceived notion into the passages of the Bible that involve ‘God and the future.’ This has led
to a detrimental, incorrect, and inconsistent, and thus unbiblical, tangential view on who God is,
His Power, His Ways and His Character.
It must be emphasized that whatever one can come to know about God, can really only
come from the revelation He Himself has given in Scripture. Unfortunately people have come to
refute some passages of the Bible because they do not harmonize with their (independently)
formed notion about God. An example of this is the often quoted statement that “God is
timeless” meaning that “He exists outside of time”[1]1 and so supposedly can travel through
future or past time, at will, and see then what will, or has, taken place. This notion is based on a
belief that since God has in the past so accurately predicted future events, then the only way He
could/must have done this is by actually having looked/gone into the future and tangibly seen
these developments take place in advance. However the Bible instead teaches that “God is
Eternal,” meaning that He has, and will, always exist. This does not come to synonymously
equate such a “timelessness.” Furthermore God repeatedly identifies Himself as being the “I
AM” (i.e., in the very present). While it is readily understandable that God has a perfect
knowledge of all that has taken place in the past, the main issue under debate is how does He
relate with the future.
There really are two main/competing views on this topic. (1) God knows the future
exhaustively, or (2) the future is comprehensively planned in advance by God in accordance to
His intentions. In the first view, the straightforward conclusion is really that whatever we do now
has absolutely no effect on the future as it would have been what we would always have done. In
other words, the future has already happened and will not be changed by present developments
(?!?). In the second view, all that awaits for these plans of God to come to pass as predicted are
people who will walk in God ways of Faith, Obedience and Love. In other words, as seen below,
in prophecy, God, has set the ideal roadmap to lead this planet in rebellion back into full
harmony with Him. All that He then now needs to bring this to past are worthy people who want
to accomplish this, His, will.

Declaring the End From the Beginning

One of the often (knee-jerkly) cited, even deemed foundational, passage to suppose that
God “foreknows” the future is Isa 46:10. However, this text is habitually, blindly misstated, and
thus is the perfect example of reading a preconceived meaning into a text. Isa 46:10, in its
specific and larger context (vss. 9-11) explicitly does not teach that God ‘knows the end from the
beginning’ but that He “declares the end from the beginning.” The Hebrew word for “declare” is
quite specific here and cannot be conflated with the Hebrew word for “knowing.” The two are
quite distinct in what they intend to depict. (See my August 27, 2010 at 5:22 AM comment
posted below for a more indepth discussion of the meaning of that key “declare” term.) The often
enjoined, defensive argument that: “God declares because He knows” is actually circular
reasoning and is not in harmony with the context here. This context found in vss. 9-11 indeed
further confirms that God does “fashion/plan” the future, and that then He seeks throughout the
earth, for any individual, group or power with which He can work with, or even, in His infallible
wisdom, fairly “commandeer”, to bring about what He had planned.[2]2

Limiting the Power of God

It is often sanctimoniously touted that those who do not believe that God exhaustively
knows every single detail of the future are ‘lessening the power of God’ or even ‘diminishing
God Himself and His Glory.’ In fact, it is the converse that is guilty of this, for it is the belief that
God can only predict future events solely by having a full, concrete knowledge of them that
reduces the Power of God and puts Him in a proverbial box. If the Bible teaches/reveals anything
about God, through many revelations and His interactions with man, it is that God does not do
things by Magic or “Hocus Pocus.” Everything that God does, even when it is not perceived by
human comprehension or senses, has a foundation in (a highest) scientific reality.[3]3 In other
word, God, the Master Designer of this Universe, is operating on a scientific level that man may
never come to understand, definitely in this fallen life. (Cf. Job 38 & 39) In other words God
knows precisely what He needs to say/do in order to cause even the minutest particle in His
Universe to do what He wants it to do, such as in the Creation, (and not any sort of “Evolution”),
as described in Genesis (cf. Heb 11:3[4]4 [5]5). Scientific discoveries today, such as microscopic
cell structure study, atomic power, nanotechnology and DNA/Genetic science, etc., helps to
realize this great knowledge of God but also causes us to further realize this vast gulf that exists
between what we know as human and what God knows. Another contemporary example for this
is seen in the personal computer (PC). To the average user, the fact that it can do so many
incredible thing with only the click of a mouse is fascinating, even bordering on the “magical”,
however to the inventor/developer of the PC, he/she fully knows and understands that everything,
and the billions of things, that a PC can do in a single second has a concrete basis in a coding that
is made up of 1's and 0's. (Even so called “magic” itself are only concrete and intricate tricks and
illusions). The Human Body itself is an excellent example of this 'highest knowledge of God,' as,
if even only what can actually be mimicked, or partly reproduced of it using today’s scientific
knowledge and technology, would still require a tremendous amount of various resources,
especially in regards to doing what the human brain can do; yet God has managed to accomplish
all of this within our frames.[6]6 All this to say that while we, in our limited knowledge, can only
readily perceive that if God predicts a future event it is because he has “travelled in time to see it
in advance”, (an event that in reality has not even taken place yet!?!), it can be seen from Biblical
revelation that God instead uses a vast and infinite number of past and present predictive and
scientific parameters to forecast these future events. All He really asks of us is to trust in this
power of His so that he can indeed accomplish His will in and through us. Furthermore God has
the unstoppable and incontrovertible power to accomplish all of His plans. In fact, the Bible
teaches, that the only thing that can stall, disrupt or even cancel out a plan of God is the free will
of man, knowingly granted by Him, still that is only a possibility if God choses to allow it to do
so.
It is quite telling that the most often used descriptive name for God in the Bible is El-
Shaddai, and other synonymous term, which effectively and literally translates into “God
Almighty.” (See my August 21, 2010 10:41 & 10:42 PM comments below for more). Clearly
God considers His Characteristic Attribute to be in His Power and Ability to (ultimately)
accomplish His will against any odds, or human obstacles. And still He does this without
violating the free will of any of His intelligently created free moral agents, i.e., human beings.
Interestingly enough this is a prominently recurring titular theme in the developments in the
(prophetic) book of Revelation (Rev 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7, 14, 19:6, 15; 21:22 which
reflects the Greek “pantokrator” = LXX translation of Heb. “El-Shaddai”).

Anthropomorphism
In many attempts to explain some text that oppose the classical view of foreknowledge, it
is claimed that an anthropomorphism has been used. This then really implies that the text does
not literally mean what it has just related or said, but rather that it has used figurative language
for the benefit of limited humans. While many times it may be true that figurative language has
been used, what the claimers of this popular rebuttal all seem to fail to realize, or take into
account, is that even when anthropomorphism is used, the intent or meaning of the described
thought or action is in no way changed or affected. It was just the communication of the message
that was adjusted. A simple trivial example of this is a mother using toddler talk to get her young
child to do something. If she e.g., says to ‘turn on the TV and put it on the news channel,’ she
doesn’t use toddler terms that mean ‘go and play outside.’ Whatever she has reworded/rephrased
here, so that her toddler can easily grasp and understand it, has the same meaning as what she
would have said if she was speaking to a teenager. So while the language used to communicate
these intentions and meanings would really be at completely opposite cognizance levels for the
toddler vs the teenager, the intended message itself still remains intact.
Similarly, when the (even supposed) anthropomorphous statements in the Bible are
closely looked at, and analyzed in their context, the message that they convey still remains intact.
If a verse says “God sees” or the “eyes of God see’ it may not mean that God literally has eyes,
but it certainly does not mean that God does not see. Whatever method He would use to see other
than eyes still makes Him capable of “seeing.” The same may be said for statement which speak
of ‘the “hand,” “ears”, “heart”, etc of the Lord’, which simply indicate that He does ‘act’, ‘hear,’
and ‘feel,’ etc, respectively. The same is true for actions that God takes, namely “repenting”,
“changing His mind” etc. So the question when examining such applicable passages is really not
the surface -is an anthropomorphism used or not, but rather, what is God trying to make
understood when He may, or may not, have gone out of His way and used our level of
cognizance in communicating this. Certainly it is not cancelling out, in any way, what He has just
expressed, stated and/or done.

God’s Election
A statement made by Jesus in Matt 22:14 as he summarized His parable on ‘guests
invited at a wedding feast’ (Matt 22:1-13; cf. COL 307-319), is quite telling of the dilemma that
God has in seeking to accomplish His planned will on earth. In that statement Jesus literally
speaks of ‘many having been called to the kingdom of God, but from among those who have
responded to this calling, the “choice ones” are few.” It is that word "choice ones", that is used
throughout the New Testament to refer to the “elect,” however this word, grammatically an
adjective, does not refer to, as it is commonly taught, ‘one who has been chosen by God from the
ceaseless ages of eternity,’ but people who are currently “choice” people, mainly by having
cultivated the right/godly qualities, who God can work with, i.e, those He can “elect” to do a
certain task in His will. This does not automatically/absolutely guarantee that these ‘elected
choice ones’ will never fail, even catastrophically, it only means that when God ‘cast his vote of
confidence on them’ and appointed them, they were indeed ‘promising, choice individuals.’
(E.g., King Saul -who thus was given the promise of perpetual kingship through his direct
descendants 1 Sam 13:13-15; 15:11). This more accurate Biblical teaching shows that man does
have a concrete, significant, contributive, and even determinative part to play in order to “make
their calling and election sure.” (2 Pet 1:10 KJV). Just like when, those in a democracy elect the
person that they consider to be the best candidate to represent them in government, God does the
same in entrusting believers with certain parts in redemptive and restorative plans He seeks to
achieve in behalf of other fellow fallen human beings.

Predestination & Foreknowledge

Several examples in the Bible show that “predestination” has more to do with ‘one having
been place on the right track/path that leads to a specifically desired destination,’ instead of
‘having it firmly been predetermined what one’s final destination will be.’ One’s staying on that
right track/path is what will determine if that person reaches that final, envisioned end point. It is
also synonymously incorrectly assumed that every time the term “predestined” is used in the
Bible, it automatically means ‘from the ceaseless ages of eternity.’ However this term, to mean
so, or for this notion to be present, must be expressedly qualified by terms which specify this as it
really could only refers to any point in a course prior to the final “destination” point. This
realization of “predestination” was perceptively seen by the newly converted New Testament
believers in Christ, as, looking back on the course of their life, they probably could see that God
indeed was acting upon their genuine sincerity of seeking for, and adhering to, truth, to place
them, and then even guide them, on this path that has now led them to becoming believers in, and
followers of, Jesus Christ. E.g., God, needing a passionate and resilient, person like Paul, (along
with being rarely, greatly educated, in those class-exclusive days; on top of literally having an
enforceable “passport” to the then known (Gentile) world as a Roman Citizen) to carry on a most
important and pivotal, but also most challenging work among the Gentiles, indeed may have
been guiding him for many years prior to his actual conversion, (or even simply starting right
after the Resurrection), until Jesus manifested Himself to Paul on the road to Damascus and
“called him”, in a most rare and unique way (Romans 8:28-30; cf. Eph 1:5, 11)).[7]7
In the same way God’s foreknowledge in regards to an individual could be at any point
during their lifetime prior to the time when they became aware/knowing of God themselves. I.e.,
from the time of the childhood of the individual in question, based on a demonstrated “choice”
character (cf. Pro. 20:11), (or, possibly, even before his/her (divinely) formative weeks in the
womb (Jer 1:5; cf. Job 31:15; Psa 22:10; 139:13; Isa 44:2; 46:3)), until the time when s/he is
called, e.g., some 50 years later.[8]8

Prophecy
What then is Prophecy? Is it thus a shot in the dark attempt to guess at what will occur in
the future, or is it an account of seen/known future developments. Biblically speaking, it is
neither. The Biblical teaching of God’s Foreplanning[9]9 shows that Prophecy is what God
knows to be the ultimate, perfect and only way in which His redemptive and restorative plan for a
fallen world will, and can only be, accomplished. (Cf. e.g., Dan 2:21; Psa 33:10, 11ff). To use
another contemporary example, also from the intricate world of computing, when the developer
of an Operating System wants to assure that his software is a secure as possible, he must not only
incorporate the security provisions in the programming that he can envision, but also all of the
ways in which a hacker can come to compromise a system using this software. For added
security, His final coding must also be rigorously encrypted so that only those with a knowledge
of the key that unlocks this encryption, and who make use of it, will be able to do so and
perceptively read into it. In a similar way, when God makes a prophecy of the future, he also
takes into account all of the ways that His Adversary, the Devil, can, or will try to, defeat this
plan. With such a secure system, really the only that the Devil can trick people into turning away
from God’s way is to use counterfeits. Much like the modern day hacker, who if e.g., he cannot
hack into a bank’s website and fraudulently redirect financial transactions to his account will
instead develop a fictitious copy of that bank’s web interface and try to trick people into
believing that it is the real thing and then steal valuable information from them. In the same way,
the Devil seeks to counterfeit every thing that God does in order to divert people into putting
their trust in it. Still, in this Great Controversy between Good and Evil, there are definite
boundaries which the Devil is not allowed to overstep in his nefarious endeavour to oppose God.
As, e.g., only the uninformed, careless, inadvertent and/or lazy computer user will allow hackers
to subterfugely take control of his system or accounts, similarly, only the non-diligent Christian
will be deceived and overtaken by the Devil’s methods. God is indeed fully aware, and in
control, to what extent He will allow such an alternative to go, i.e., to resemble the genuine (just
like a fraudster may not be able to perfectly replicate, if at all, certain authenticating marks of the
genuine).

The Forthcoming Book

Of course as this here is only a book preview, all of these sub-topics from the
forthcoming book are not here fully developed and expounded nor exhaustively substantiated,
however they are in the book. This book takes into full consideration the Biblical arguments that
have been made by other writers on this topic. Notably in the work of Stephen C. Roy (How
Much Does God Foreknow - A Comprehensive Biblical Study) who has posited that over 2323
predictive passages/prophecies in the Bible show that God must exhaustively know future events.
as these involve the future free decisions of individuals. Actually, as it was briefly stated here
earlier, the Biblically supported converse is much more amazing, and most importantly True.
Case in point, the Seventy Weeks of Daniel. Some may say here that if people really have free
will, and, as expounded here, God does not know with absolute certainty the future, nor the
future free decisions of people, then how would He know here in this prophecy that some 600
years in the future the Jewish people would not only reject the Messiah, but even put Him to
death. Well the Biblical answer is quite simple. God had plenty of examples in the past of how
His people treated the prophets He had sent to them, who they rejected their message, even
endeavoring, and succeeding, in putting some of them to death. (cf. Acts 7). While all Israel
believed that the coming Messiah would be an externally irresistibly, even majestic personage,
God already knew how He was going to test the true motives of His people when that time would
come, in the humble advent of Jesus. As God’s New Covenant was then going to be a matter of
the heart, and not the same external nature as the Old Covenant (Jer 31:31-33), God knew that, as
Christ taught in His ministry, a test to see if His laws had changed His people’s heart was going
to be effected. So in this 70 Week prophecy, which spoke of the “most extreme of abominations”
in the murder of the Messiah, and then the resulting consequence of utter physical destruction,
God had set forth before the people, as a most solemn warning for hundreds of year, the absolute
worst case scenario, but also, simultaneously what was indeed most likely to occur. (Cf. Jer 18:1-
12ff). Any person studying this prophecy should have become alert to prepare to heed the
Messiah’s message. They even had a precisely timed prophecy to help them prepare, so really
they had no excuse. However the message of Christ of ‘a true love of God and others’ came to go
against all of what they wanted, solely for their own benefit, out of their now strict obedience to
God’s laws and certainly not for the benefit of others. So that most likely, worst case scenario
indeed came true as none of the conditional requirements in Dan 9:24 were met by the Jewish
people. Had they heeded Christ’s message then those statements of rejection and destruction
would not have come to pass as God ‘s very own provision, stated in Jer 18:8 for such genuine
changes, fully allows for. However God’s perceived most likely scenario, leading to worst-case
developments indeed came true as prophesied and judgement soon followed. And, as shown
below, the Sovereign God can even proceed to endure the heart of anyone who effectively has
long failed a previous fair test, so that His prophesied plans, will come to pass as declared, and in
their precise details, however this is still done as a merciful object lesson and warning for future
generations of Believers who are quite likely to have to face an even more stringent test.
Indeed, the fact that God, the great I AM, can accomplish His will without
concretely/definitely knowing any aspect of the future (which it must be emphasized, when you
really think about it, has not occurred yet, for if it has, then the present is actually the long ago
past!), indeed commends Him of our complete Trust, Faith, Love and Worship, for indeed there
is no other god who can do this (Isa 46:9). And that is all that He really asks of us so that things
can be set, and kept, aright in His Universe. And really, is ‘anything impossible for God to do,’
as He Himself states (Gen 18:14; Num 11:23; Job 42:2; Jer 32:27; Matt 19:26|Mar 10:27|Luke
18:27; Luke 1:37; cf. Zec 8:6), when He can sovereignly even “harden hearts” so that His (full)
will may be done as was the case with Pharaoh. (Exod 4:21; cf. 10:1, 20, 27: 11:10; 14:4, 8, 17;
see also Deut 2:30, Jos 11:20). For all we know, Pharaoh may have been willing to capitulate by,
at least, the 6th plague, but God probably seeing that this would be done in some sort of still
residual, prideful bestowal by him, or out of a base self-interest to simply prevent any further
damage to Egypt, and not out of a due, heartfelt concession to the Uncontestable Power of the
God of Israel, “hardened his heart” (Exo 9:12) to literally ‘unforgetably bring that point home!’
This book will be an exhaustive analysis of all of these, and other, passages dealing with
this subject, for a Biblical doctrine is not to be based upon a handful of selective (supposedly)
supportive passages. All of the, up to now, inconsistent and even seemingly contradicting
passages in the Bible are also perfectly, and beautifully, resolved by viewing them in this Biblical
View. It will be shown just how God’s Foreplanning method indeed can come to so accurately
predict these future developments, and it also simultaneously highlights the manifested leading
attributes of the Godhead, namely of being: All-Powerful, All-Loving and All-Knowing, which,
interestingly enough, are the predominantly manifested, and harmonized, characteristic of,
respectively, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
God Bless.

Weblinks
http://www.egwtext.whiteestate.org/cgi-bin/egw2html?C=95143055&K=005423012611024328
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inspiration_of_Ellen_White

http://www.inspirasjonsuken.no/media/JR/05-JeffreyR-My_testimony.mp3
http://www.audioverse.org/sermons/recordings/2111/does-god-exist-.html

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4815075170256446944
http://www.educatetruth.com/

Clifford Goldstein Links

http://www.audioverse.org/sermons/recordings/1951/called-by-name.html
http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=cliff-
http://freelygivensite.wordpress.com/category/speakers/clifford-goldstein/
http://www.youtube.com/user/myaxioo
http://www.stabenow.org/Clifford%20Goldstein/SEYC%202008_%20Christian%20Apologetics
_%20Defending%20Your%20Faith%20in%20Today%27s%20World/01%20Christian%20Apolo
getics%20%231.mp3
http://njkproject.blogspot.com/2009/11/ministry-of-david-gates.html
http://www.opentheism.info/
http://njkproject.blogspot.com/2009/10/book-preview-god-all-mighty.html?showComment=1282
900946796#c8588044753528344291
http://njkproject.blogspot.com/2009/10/book-preview-god-all-mighty.html?showComment=1282
444908730#c1977958570343278096
http://njkproject.blogspot.com/2009/10/book-preview-god-all-mighty.html?showComment=1282
444961743#c8039047425890402901

David Gates Philosophy

http://www.missionslibrary.com/gmi/en/audio/Miami2010/Miami_Here_Comes_the_Bride_-_H
ow_will_it_End.mp3
________________

1. [1] An example of this popular assumption is seen in this sermon [16:29-18:09ff] by Jeffrey
Rosario, who posits, as part of his self-proclaimed ‘airtight cosmological argument for the
existence of God’, that since this universe evidently had a beginning (mainly based on his prior
philosophical argument that ‘infinite past time is a philosophical impossibility - else the
“present” would never be reached’), its starting “time” had to have been caused by an
independent, external, here, personal, force, i.e., God. So, he concludes, God must then exist
“outside of time.” There are however several non-sequitur problems with this line of reasoning.
First of all, if infinite past time is impossible, as it is claimed, and that solely due to
“philosophical reasonings/understandings” then how does God Himself exist from an infinite,
eternal past, for even His Eternal existence involves concrete, transpiring time? It would also
logically seem that if a philosophy, which inherently precludes anything that is not
evidential/natural (i.e., the miraculous), is to be the guide here, it would also prevent someone to
assume that anyone could exist from eternity, for everything must have a beginning. To also posit
that philosophical arguments/reasoning are used to ‘work back to the “God factor”’ is inherently
not cogent because this ‘reversed-philosophy’ is incontrovertibly still all due to, and possible,
because of a foundational, inceptive supernatural assumption/belief. This would be like trying to
prove the existence of unicorns by working backwards from even scientific observations on a
pony. Try as you may but at some point you are going to have to still outrightly “assume/believe”
that a unicorn exists. So, similarly, if such philosophical reasonings are going to be used to try to
prove the existence, and creative power of God, they would have to be applied across the board
here, and not opportunistically/selectively.
(Interestingly enough, it is in this ‘eternal past time reaching the present’ conundrum that
the argument/belief that ‘God is not bound by time’ would make sense as it would explain how
He can indeed exists from eternity and still reach present time. (Such a belief however does not
extend into a, yet-to-exist, future)). Indeed at some point a belief in God must jump off a
philosophical band-wagon, running in circles, and make the leap of faith into believing that what
makes God the observedly Supernatural Being that He inherently must be, is this power of being
Eternal. As Clifford Goldstein, who often engages Beliefs issues from a philosophy and/vs. faith
perspective (cf. here and here), summarily says for this exposition [35:29-48:05], ‘philosophy
and logic only goes to a certain endpoint, and then the only option that is left is: Faith.’
(Interestingly enough, Goldstein once asked Rosario, while they were at a meeting together, on
his upcoming announced presentation: ‘So you are going to prove that God exists???’, to which
Rosario admitted this really was not achievable, per se. (see here [08:52-09:23]))*
Secondly, Rosario has conflated the ‘time since a created universe’ with the ‘time of
God’s existence.’ However, the two are not independent, parallel times, but
continuous/sequential times, just like a mother who gives birth to a child does not suddenly exist
outside of the child’s time since his birth solely because she effectively “created” that child. The
“time” of this universe is simply a sequential time segment within the greater Time of God’s
eternal existence.
Rosario also, quite oddly, boasts that ‘his reasonings can be made independently of the
Bible’ however this is inherently false since, 1) he defaultly attributes the reasoned “independent
creative force” to the God of the Bible, Yahweh, and not e.g., to Baal, Zeus or “The Force”; and
2) he circularly works from a default/assumed premise that this Creator God is unquestionably
infinite/eternal, and therefore the only “non-caused” entity in the universe. However this is a
claim/belief that can only be arrived at based upon the actual testimony of Scripture on this view.
An evolutional argument can easily posit that other “uncaused forces” existed before such a
“Creator God force” and therefore would have caused/created this God. Therefore the limiting of
Creation to only one hierarchal step, to a unprecedented God who has an eternal existence, is
really a strict defense of what the Bible has said.
While it may surfacedly be helpful to facilitate reaching secularists by making arguments
for the existence of God that seemingly can stand on their own, apart from direct Bible quotes,
still, ultimately all that a Bible believer adheres to as a theory of origins does come from what
has been stated in the Scriptures. The very fact that believers attribute creation to Yahweh God is
solely due to the fact that He has claimed to have done it. So whether one wants to admit it or
not, any discussion about the existence of God stems solely from claims already made in the
Bible as whatever we may observe in nature can indeed easily be attributed to anything else but
what the Bible claims. To all who come to truly believe, this view ultimately can, and will only,
have been accepted “by faith.” (Cf. Heb. 11:1-3, 6). Effectively, as it is done by Rosario, seeking
to establish Truth, without the Truthful testimony (i.e, the Bible), is quite self-evidently, utterly
futile.

* David Gates, in this August 2010 sermon [03:21-09:12], taking a crack at a quasi-philosophical
approach to debating the existence of God, claims that ‘he can “prove” that God exists by Albert
Eistein’s formula: E=mc2’. He thus goes on to posit that: (a) ‘since there has to be a very large
source of Energy (E) for mass (m) to exists;’ and (b) ‘since the source of all energy is God, (i.e.,
the God of the Bible), thus E equals God as stated by Acts 17:28a,’ then (c) ‘God must exist
since if E=0 then m=0'!!! To say here that this is merely circular reasoning would actually be
complimenting this rational. It is actually “oblivious mindlessness” to say the least. This is like
someone trying to prove that they attended the last Super Bowl Game, although they have
absolutely no proof of this (ticket stub, ticket purchase receipt, video footage, etc), because
everyone knows that he always buys all of the tickets to every Super Bowl, and keeps them all to
himself. So if anyone is seen at a Super Bowl game then it must be understood that this must, and
can only, be him!!
Indeed without the Biblically-biased preconceptions that Gates bring along into this
philosophical argument, it cannot be assumed at all that ‘E in Einstein’s formula means God
since He is the source of all Energy.’ When such “obliviously mindless” arguments are made to
non-believers in an attempt to prove to them that God exists, they only serve to rightly make
them quite perplexedly weary of such irrational Believers. If one is going to have faith in God
then do have faith, and being honest to non-believers that this is indeed ultimately a faith-based
belief will produce better and lasting spiritual fruits in those who are open to accept it. Irrational,
oblivious, mindless and circular arguments/reasoning only provide them an actually valid excuse
to persist in unbelief.

2. [2] It is important to stress from the outset that this is Biblical view presented here not at all
dependent on, derived from, or even, synonymous with, the more readily known Open Theism
view. This is mainly because Open Theism basically claims that ‘God is “open to” (i.e.,
dependent on) the “input” of humans in determining the future,’ while the Biblical view here, as
seen in Isa 46:9-11, states that ‘a prescient God sovereignly declares what the future will be in
this Great Controversy Between and Good an Evil, and then searches throughout the earth for a
person/people who will align themselves with that expressed will and help to bring it about.
Ultimately the only thing that is a variable here is the time that it will take for professing
believers to bring about this perfect, pre-stated will, and that, specifically as needed/intended.

3. [3] Biblical examples that reveal this are seen in the book: The Truth About Angels, which is a
compilation from the inspired writings of Ellen White, and shows that many of the incidents in
the Bible that have been considered to have been of a purely “supernatural” were actually
concretely actuated by unseen angels operating behind the scenes. In this way the angels are
pretty much the “hands of God” when it comes to bring about tangible events upon earth.

4. [4] Indeed Heb 11:3 does not say that ‘God created from what does not exist, i.e., “out of
nothing”’ as it is commonly assumed; but says that ‘God created out of what is not “noticed.”’
Indeed the Greek term phainos (= -phany - a manifestation/appearance) here is used to indicate
something that is present but is not yet made manifest to “the naked eye”, e.g., appearing angels.
(Matt 1:20). (Even the Latin translation of the Greek here does not say ex nihilo ‘out of nothing’
as commonly dogmatically assumed, but is actually based upon an apocryphal statement; but
rightly: ex invisibilibus ‘out of the non-visible’). So this would indeed described the
“invisibleness” of yet existing atomic and sub-atomic particles.

5. [5] Also the key Greek word that is used in this verse, and is rightly translated as: “framed”,
“prepared” is katartizo. It could also have the meanings of “mend”, “complete”, “equip, or
“fulfill”. The root meaning of this word is to indicate something that has come to a
completed/restored state by careful/intricate, preparative action to that end. This therefore could
show that while the ‘heavens and the earth may have stood “without form and void”’ for ages
(Gen 1:1, 2a), God then “completed it”/”framed it” when He later spoke its chaotic components
into order to organize it for habitation by created humans (Gen 1:3ff). In other words, this planet
may have been just as hostile and humanly inhabitable for ages, even as other planets in this
Galaxy still are, until God “prepared it” by infinitely complex, ‘voice-activated’ creative
processes, over six literal days. The same infinite, but still concretely scientific processes would
have been used to create these early stage “heavens and earth” in the first place (cf. Psa 33:6).
Also an understanding here that the Creation was through a voice-activated process does
not at all diminish from the creative power of God, (cf. 2 Pet 3:5), in fact it further shows His
inherent and intrinsic mastery over all of Creation. As mentioned in Note #1, there are many
examples in the Bible and the SOP that indeed show that God always works through quite
tangible means.
Such an understanding here can also provide a quite logical explanation as to why only
one major aspect of creation was created per day. If creation was, as assumed, instantaneous, then
God could have easily created everything in a single day, or even one hour or minute. It however
seems that from the time that God spoke for something to come to be, the process for that thing
to ‘become fully establish’ may have taken up the rest of that day. Hence this is why it would
have taken six days to complete the entire creation, or more (probably) accurately, the
organization of this planet for human life.
Nonetheless, as it is being admonished in this blog post, one’s personal view must be
contained by, and harmonize with, what is actually taught throughout the Scriptures, and so as
John 1:3 says that the Eternal God, (specifically here, the pre-incarnate Christ), both predated,
and created, all things, then it is thus further held here, also still in harmony with the rest of the
testimony of Scripture on this Creative method issue, that God probably did Himself originally
create these atomic/sub-atomic “building block” particles out of nothing, and who knows,
perhaps from a ‘small, energy discharging, self-reproductively expanding, nucleus cluster (i.e., a
“Big Bang”). In fact, this further view would come to partly validate the apocryphal testimony of
2 Maccabees 7:28 of “ex nihilo” creation, which then would be speaking of the ultimate origin of
God’s Creation.

6. [6] As a somewhat related side note here, it is often said that ‘life is so fragile and fleeting’,
especially at the moment of the death of a known/loved one, however considering all of the
various little things that one can actually die from, the most prominent arguably being a single
missed heartbeat from the normative ca. 100,000 that we have each day, and the severity of
trauma that the body can normally recover from, it is actually more logical to say that “it is easier
to live than it is to die.” We are indeed “fearfully and wonderfully made.” (Psa 139:12-16)
[Incidently, vs, 16 here, which is a commonly cited passage of those who have defended a
“classical” view of foreknowledge, actually, upon proper translation and exegesis, helps to
establish and fully supports the foreplanning view presented here.]

7. [7] Similarly, it is often assumed that the prophet Jeremiah was effectively, a ‘spineless,
weeping melancholic, “namby pamby” pushover’ based mostly on the presumption that he
authored the book of “Lamentations” (a conclusion that itself, upon thorough study, as it has
been done, is substantively, highly debatable), however, just reading of all of the physical
sufferings that Jeremiah was subjected to in bearing his testimony of the then coming utter,
physical destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple; sufferings which are easily defendable as the
most endured by any other Biblical prophet (where even “martyrdom for right” here may have
seemed like a desired relief), God, who ‘knew, formed, consecrated and appointed Jeremiah from
the womb’ (Jer 1:5) literally needed such a resilient “rough-neck” (e.g., Jer 28:12 - whether
broken from his neck or not) to carry out this local, and then even global, prophetic ministry, and
may have even genetically/psychologically (i.e. in character - cf. Ezek 3:8, 9) prepared him to be
such a person. And just before anyone cries “foul” here, keep in mind that in even this would be
sovereign act of God, He still would have greatly risked a lot here by literally ‘placing all of His
best eggs in one basket’ in so providentially commissioning Jeremiah.

8. [8] An example of the typical temporally and theologically, illogical, non-sequitur and
incoherent conclusions and beliefs that the false understanding of God and the Future, as taught
by the “Classical View”, result in, is seen in statements such as the following one by e.g., David
Gates. He repeatedly states that the postponement of the return of Christ in ca. 1888, as declared
by the SOP, caused many world events to occur that God just did not want to came to past. These
are events such as, prominently, World Wars I and II with their great casualties and the deadly
weapons that were invented mainly because of them (e.g., machine gun, chemical weapons, the
atomic bombs.) However that is not a convincing rational on any level. Simply by the numbers
here, ca. 85 million people were killed during these 2 World Wars, or also, even added to this the
30 million more he also cites that were killed by Stalin's regime; however close to 6 billion
people have been born since ca. 1888, with many of them becoming saved Christians. So it
would seem rather quite to the advantage of God for time to have been “prolonged.”
Gates here, either consciously or subconsciously, has tried to give a rational as to why
God would want to return in 1888. Indeed this would mean that God did not want anyone else,
including Gates himself, to be born, so therefore Gates tries to present the great atrocities of these
two World Wars as the best reason ‘why God wanted to wrap things up much sooner.’
That is an indeed a comforting scenario, but, as the simple math above shows, it does not
paint a just picture of God, who according to this Classical View, should have known as a hard
fact that many more people would have been saved, than even died in these conflicts. Indeed the
classical view has to divorce itself from a quite present reality in all of this Great Controversy
theme. That theological reality is that God indeed wanted to wrap things up in ca. 1888 simply
because there existed a great risk that a further advance in the future, when e.g., already birthed
ideologies such as secularism, post-modernism, evolution, increasing atheism, materialism,
witchcraft etc., would not only become worse, but could also possibility drown out True
Christianity, even all of Christianity. (ala. “the days of Noah” (Luke 17:26ff) when on 8
righteous ones were found). Therefore it was indeed a great risk to continue on into this looming
future.
 With that ca. 1888 generation of Remnant believers, that had most, and virtually all, of
now fulfilled Biblical revelations in hand, this was indeed one of the best opportunity to most
triumphantly end this Great Controversy. Whatever that would-be faith-full generation of
believers could not do for themselves, God surely would step in an supernaturally assist or even
personally (i.e., through angels) accomplish it. However that was not the case with an actually
faith-less generation, and the Second Coming indeed had to be postponed.
Fortunately, new “choice” people were not only found in the ensuing generation since
then, but these also remained faithful to the call of God, and thus God was able to maintain this
work, even in the face of an increasingly godless society and world. However there was a quite
real and ever-present risk involved, a risk that God evidently would have preferred not to take.
Adding to this risk was the fact that God had used quite motivating, and even specific
prophetic statements and orchestrated fulfillments in order to “help the unbelief” of the
professing pre-1888 generation. So a postponement of these Second Coming promises would
only cause serious, and even faith-losing, confusion. So this pre-1888 gift would come to now
also be a future obstacle for many in seeking to rebuild, or even maintain that generation of
believers. Indeed many today, with excusable cause (e.g, Deut 18:22), lose faith in the Remnant
Church and the SOP because of the recorded mention of the non-fulfilled statements.
Some may think here that this explanation here suggests that God is somehow not able to
do what He says He will do and thus is a slighting attack on His Power, however this view is
consistent with the correct Theological understanding that God cannot force anyone to love Him,
and thus cannot save such an undesiring person. So if circumstance caused that no one wanted to
believe in God in the post-1888 days, which a simple comparison of the current Remnant vs. the
World, a ca. 400:1 ratio or 0.25% easily shows could have been the case, then God could not
“fabricate” believers by forcing some people to believe in Him.
There is also the realistic situation of Hell. With God seeing that world conditions vs. the
possibility of another typical lackadaisical and lukewarm Remnant, would more than likely result
in most of these 6+ billion to-be-born people to eventually be cast in Hell, suffer and die
eternally, then this most loving God would have much more preferred that this most probable
situation never to occur. In other words, He would rather these people not be born at all, then be
born, suffer, in even this life, and then in Hell and then die eternally with an affecting and
tangible memory of them lasting for at least 1000 years after that, even in heaven. This all would
be like a married, life-valuing, couple knowing that there is a 99.75% chance that whatever
natural children that they can have, will have some sort of painful and suffering lifelong
condition/disease, even one that is diagnose after their birth and little later in life, to take the
necessary medical steps so that they never could conceive children and seeing them suffer, rather
than take a chance for a having healthy one.
This understanding here also harmonizes with the view that, although God may have
certain prophetic roles to fill, to say that he knew precisely the person who would fill them before
these individuals were even conceived is indeed not sound theology. So rather than one falsely
rejoicing, even with a “I-must-be-so-important pride,” that ‘God knew them billions of years ago
and that they would, e.g., be engaged in this great ministry,’ they should rather be prayerfully
glad that they have done what is required by God so that He could have chosen them, and
continues to do so, in whatever capacity He has entrusted them with.
All this to say that the proper theological view of God and the Future, realistically points
out that in the Great Controversy between good and evil there are tremendous risks involved,
especially for God and the cause of triumphantly vindicated Truth. This is something that the
Classical View quite detrimentally, does not, and even cannot, take into due consideration.

9. [9] What is intended by the deliberate use of the term “foreplan”, which may seem to be
redundant, is "to plan well beforehand." It is done so to emphasize ‘the planning of a future event
well in advanced of even the time when it is even pertinently relevant. As an illustration,
foreplanning would involve a person making plans for a vacation five years beforehand, even
with four vacations in the years leading up to this one. On the other hand, simply planning this
vacation would be making plans for it, in its year of occurrence, and even only when the vacation
period approaches, e.g., 1 month before. So “foreplanning” is used for this Theological view to
emphasize the long term way in which God deals with future events far in advance of time, even
before they have any discernable trace of occurrence to human eyes, to the extent where ‘He can
thus declare the end from the beginning.’