Randomness in the Bible?

Thanks, I knew you wouldn't do it. You are indeed consistent...and dishonest. You have failed to define anything anyone asks you. As has already been pointed out to you, copying and pasting things with the word contained within IS NOT DEFINING the word.

Since you want to keep everyone guessing all of the time on what you mean when you say anything (randomness in the Bible for instance) I think it is clear who holds to the "nameless" theology here.

 

Hi Luke, one verse is all one needs if correctly understood. God's word is trustworthy and reliable and profitable for correction.

And again, anytime someone wants me to "prove" something, a red flag goes up. I can provide evidence that is sufficent for me and for others to accept the premise. If you care to accept it, great. But please do set the standard that I must prove something to your satisfication. Or claim because you rejected it, I did not make the case which others would accept as "proof."

 

This is a false dichotomy.

You two make it appear things must happen by God's direct agency or its completely random. There is the "permissive" aspect of God's decree, remember the definition of decree you refused to address or supply, Luke?

Crabtownboy is now appearing to be appealing to that aspect of God's decree (one that even Edwards acknowledged and taught) but you still can't seem to recognize the distinction between what God actively DOES and what God passively PERMITS, something even Calvinists and Arminians historically have been able to agree upon. :tear:

 

Good luck with that. I will...and I believe Skan said he would give you a check for $1000 as well if you did.

Are you going to define "randomness" for us as well?

 

If I was in armed conflict, lets say more than 1000 BC, and shot an arrow without taking specific aim and the arrow happened to hit an opponent right between two pieces of his armor, I would think the wound happened by chance. But another might say, no Van, you are wrong. God controlled that flight not with long standing rules of physics, but guided it to accomplish his specific predetermined purpose for that shot.

Of course he would be making that all up, all we know is it happened without specific intent. Anyone can add to scripture, but if we stick to what it says, sometimes arrows are shot at random.

 

Randomness or chance in the Bible:

I added the bold.

 

A confessional document that uses the word in the same manner that you have used it does not qualify as a definition. And regarding the statement:

"“God from all eternity did, by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass:”

You have only replaced the word "decree" with the word "ordain" which is the OTHER word I requested that you define back when we first started this quest for definitions. :BangHead:

Pick a theological dictionary and copy and paste the definition of decree and ordain that you are comfortable with and we can move on Luke, its not that difficult.

 

Ecceliastes also says this:

Ecclesiastes 3:1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:



It would appear there is a contradiction, but scripture never contradicts itself.

"Time and chance" is another way of saying that bad things happen to everyone for no apparent reason.
Yet God is in control. We just do not see the whole picture as He does.

 

That is a statement of faith that cannot be proven one way or the other. You gave two verses ... if my memory is correct ... both of which can be interpreted a number of ways as all scripture can be so interpreted. I found two verses and, as you have shown, they can be interpreted in all honesty in several ways. That is just one of the many reasons our journey to understanding continues throughout all our life and if we do not change in our understanding as we age then something is terribly wrong within our own quest.

That sounds like double-speak.

I am still waiting on an explanation of how randomness impacts negatively on God's character?

also ...

Does God have to act or have acted according to your understanding?

I would never and I mean never make such an assertion that God had to do it the way I understand. That would be skating on extremely thin ice seeing as how my understanding has changed over the years.

I hope you understand all this is very gently said.




It was ONLY random on the part of the man drawing the bow. It was not at ALL random on the part of God.[/QUOTE]

 

I must have missed something. I thought the Bible exists to give us guidance and to define our positions.

I am a very traditional Baptist and put very little faith in confessions. Sorry.

 

Define your position "yes," the individual words being employed "no." I don't have the confessional authors here to debate, I have you. You can just defer to them as if they are inerrant and divinely inspired because they use lofty pretty language, or you can engage in the discussion and defend your views.

Let's start by defining "decree" and "ordain."