My father-in-law is a physician and an athiest. While at dinner with him last night speaking on creation, he asked me to answer a question that I coul

Hello “Dr. Doesn’t know best”

Do you know what a straw dog is? A straw dog is a false assumption that a person lays down as a foundational truth. From that false assumption a conclusion is reached that is consistent with the false starting point. You have then both a wrong starting point and its inevitable "child" a wrong conclusion.

The problem is that two wrongs don’t make a right. Your father in law is a physician and therefore a scientist. So let’s illustrate this from medical science.

Years ago some doctors thought that when people were sick the problem was in the blood (This was a false assumption, your straw dog). So to return them to health you nicked a blood vessel of one sort or another and let it bleed some of that bad blood out. This was called blood letting.

If the patient was seriously ill several blood lettings were deemed necessary to restore them to health. Perhaps the best known recipient of this procedure was a man named George.

After several sessions the diseases course did indeed come to an end. Unfortunately it came to an end because the host body it lived in died, from blood loss.

George’s last name was Washington. George Washington the first President of our country.

The straw dog here is that GOD cannot possible be all knowing if man has free will.

A. Let's break down all the component parts of this question.

• There is a presumption that GOD is all knowing
• There is a presumption that people's free will and GOD'S knowing things ahead of time are mutually exclusive
• There is a presumption that GOD has chosen some people to salvation and in that choice has condemned those not chosen to hell.

B. Is GOD all knowing?
Let’s begin the response to this question by stating what should be obvious. To say GOD is all knowing is not the same as proving He is all knowing.

1. The Bible says that GOD is all knowing
The Bible states that GOD knows everything. The theological term for this is omniscient.

GOD knows things as they are
GOD knows things as they will be
GOD knows things as they might have been

a. GOD knows things as they are

“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight.
Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him
to whom we must give account”
---Hebrews 4:13

b. GOD knows all future events

“Or declare to us the things to come,
tell us what the future holds,

so we may know that you are gods.”
---Isaiah 41:22b-23a

Through predictive prophecy we see that GOD is above the element of time. He is supernatural as seen by His ability to do what we who are natural cannot do.

Through predictions (many hundreds of them). We knew where Christ was to be born (Micah 5:2); The precise day of his death (Daniel 9:25); and the method of his death (Psalm 22) among other things.

Predictions foretold that Cyrus would deliver the Jews from Babylon about 150 years before it happened. This prediction even names Cyrus by name more than 100 years before he was born.

c. GOD knows what might have happened if man had chosen differently
This is an important truth to notice because one part of the question we were asked was “Either man has free will and God cannot know what man will decide tomorrow”

There is an interesting passage in 1 Samuel that addresses this “on point”.

David had been fleeing from Saul who wanted to kill him. David and his men were living in a town by the name of Keilah.

David asked GOD two questions. First would Saul come to Keilah to attack him? Second if he stayed in the town of Keilah would the people turn him over to Saul?

GOD said yes to both questions so David walked out of the city with his men and moved to desert strongholds and in the mountains. ( 1 Samuel 23:7-14)

Here is the point. GOD knew what would happen if David stayed in Keilah or if he chose not to stay. Man’s free will and GOD’S ability to see the future are not therefore mutually exclusive.

C. "or man does not have free will and God has chosen to save some and condemn others."
I think this may be a secondary sticking point for your father in law. Has GOD chosen people to be saved ? Yes He has.

The scriptures however, indicate that He has chosen not a select number of people to be saved. Instead He has chosen all men to be saved.

3) This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4) who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.

----1 Timothy 2:3-4

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

----2 Peter 3:9

The reason that all people are not going to enter heaven is that some people decline the invitation.

D. Concluding Thoughts
What have we seen? We have seen that The question to you from your father in law was based on a false assumption. That being that GOD’S ability to see the future and man’s free will were mutually exclusive.

We have also seen that although GOD has chosen all men to be saved not all men have chosen to accept the invitation.

Your question was an interesting spin on questions that are frequently asked.

Don
1 Peter 3:15