Question
Does God know our future thoughts?
Answer
He can, if He wants to. He is God, and He owns this place!
But that does not remove our personal responsibility for our actions. Otherwise, God would be unreasonable to hold us accountable for our actions, and we know that He does hold us accountable.
A preacher in Zimbabwe, in south Africa, once explained the Bible doctrine of predestination. He used one passage:
Gal 6:7-8 7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. (KJV)
And he used common sense, which they in Africa may have a lot more of than we do, because their life is so much simpler than ours. When a farmer plants beans, he gets beans, not wheat. When he plants peanuts, he get peanuts, not potatoes. You get the picture.
We will reap what we sow. God has promised it. And I have experienced it. Trust me, God knows what He is talking about!
Remember Cain? There is a message there for us:
Gen 4:3-7 3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. 4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: 5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. 6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. (KJV)
Focus on that last statement “…and thou shalt rule over him.” Let’s see it in another version:
Gen 4:7 7 “If you do well, will not {your countenance} be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.” (NAS)
We must play an active role in our own life. Satan is out there trying to snag us, but we must do all we can to prevent that. And God will help us:
1 Cor 10:13 13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (KJV)
Two messages here:
1. God will protect us, and will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able to endure. A very comforting promise.
2. God will always provide a way of escape. It will always be there, but we may have to really look hard to find it. And when we find it, God’s way of escape may not be pretty, and it may not be fun. But if we are going to get out of that mess, we must take advantage of God’s escape plan.
Remember the one about the guy standed in a flood? He escaped to the roof of his house. A man in a rowboat came by and asked if he could take the man to safety. The man said, “No, I prayed to God to take care of me, and I trust that He will.” Then as the waters got higher, a military amphibious vehicle came by and ordered the guy to evacuate, but again he refused, saying, “No, I prayed to God to take care of me, and I trust that He will.” Then as the waters got higher, and the guy was standing on the top of his chimney, a news helicopter came by and begged him to climb up the rope to the safety of the helicopter. But the man said, “No, I prayed to God to take care of me, and I trust that He will.” Then the waters rose higher, and the man drowned. When he saw God, he asked God, “Why did you not save me!” And God responded that He had sent the man in the rowboat, and the military amphibious vehicle, and finally the news helicopter.
God gives us a way out. We have to use it.
By David Baize
