Norman Geisler’s Chosen but Free

This book is filled with so much Theological unrest that it is almost impossible to review it in such a short writing. That being said I will do my best to hit on just a few of the issues that I came across in the book. One issue that I read about is the one of who made me do it. This is the issue of who or what makes me sin. There are a lot of views on this very issue today and each one says that the other is heretical. The view that I have found to be the most expectable at first glance is that we make our selves sin. Although that is the easy answer it does not answer all the questions on the topic. It is like saying that when a man makes a computer and then the computer breaks down it is the computers fault that it did not last. That being said the computer can only do what it was made to do by the man. In the same way we as humans are created by God. This would say that we can only do what we were created to do and therefore it is not our fault that we sin. The problem with this theory is that God is perfect and He is not limited in his creation as we are when we make something. God can and did create a creature with free will and the ability to make choices. Unlike that computer we can choose on our own which way to go we do not have to follow the guidelines set on use by our creator in every decision. The other possibility for the cause of our sin could come from Satin the prince of darkness. This would be the easy way out of the situation because if Satin was the one making use sin it would be easy to push the blame on him and not have to do anything else with it. No one would be upset if Satin had more bad attributes and it is easy to think he causes all the bad things in our lives. This view holds some water in that Satin is one who tempts us to sin and therefore has a part in our sin. Unfortunately that is not the end because Satin does not have to power to force us to do anything. God does not allow him to tempt us with more than we can handle so it is still a choice that we make when we sin. It is not forced on us by anyone. Unless God gives me a revelation otherwise I believe that the view that states I cause myself to sin is the most correct Therefore I agree with Norman Geisler’s view in his book Chosen but Free.

Pastor

There are some very specific instructions in the Bible about what a pastor should be. It is important to stick to these guide lines so that the church can be lead by a man that is suited for the job. In the church today there are so many rules and regulations that everyone must follow that are such gray areas in the Bible but when it comes to the area of leadership everyone wants to let everyone be apart. This is not a good area to be liberal with the rule of who can lead the church. The leader of the Church is God ultimately but the individual leaders should held to a higher slandered then the rest of the body because everyone is looking to them for guidance. That being said I do believe that the slandered should be held as a post salvation slandered. What a man does before he is saved is forgiven and cleansed. I think that Paul is a really good example of this. Before his conversion he was a terrible man but after God got a hold of his life he was a new man. As long as one changes at his salvation and follows the criteria for leadership he should be eligible to be a pastor.

Testimony

Early on in my life I found that I was missing something. I was not sure what it was and like all little kids I asked my parents about it and they told that I was created in Sin. They went on to explain Sin to be the things that God does not like and it drives us away from him. They told me that God made away for us to be forgiven and all we need to do is ask God through prayer. They showed me that God loved me the only thing keeping me from his love is my own Sin. That night I asked for forgiveness of my Sin and began living my new life. My goal was no longer to please myself and get what I want. I now am living for what God wants and trying to change my ways. Most of my time life does not change that much to others but on the inside I was always changing. Ever since that day I have been slowly putting my own desires aside and trying to live like Christ or how God would have me live.  I would say that the most important thing that I have done in my life is give it away.