According to the Characteristics of Yaweh, Predestination is Evident

And hope this will be a fantastic debate. I am arguing against Libertarian free will, which from here on forth I will simply call "free will. " I am sure my opponent is arguing for libertarian free will, as most Christians do. "Libertarian free will means that our choices are free from the determination or constraints of human nature and free from any predetermination by God. All "free will theists" hold that libertarian freedom is essential for moral responsibility, for if our choice is determined or caused by anything, including our own desires, they reason, it cannot properly be called a free choice. " . http://www.theopedia.com... C1: Omniscience "God knows everything that has happened, happens, and will happen. Or, more accurately, he sees time like we see sheets of paper: it's all there at once. " My opponent agrees that God is already at the future, is at the past, and is in the present, all at once. Omnipresence, how does this help free will? It doesn't. In fact, it has the opposite effect. If God "sees time like we see sheets of paper: it's all there at once. " this means that the future has already happened to God. What has happened is bound to happen, meaning our future is already determined. "I agree, God knew not only everything that would happen to the person, but everything that the person would choose to do as well. God knows what will happen. God's knowledge of what we will choose does not take away the choice. Fate is what will happen; free will is what can happen. " If God created person A, knowing person A would die at the age of 5. Person A does not have free will to live longer than the age of 5, for that is what God made it to be. If I build a bomb that will detonate in 5 years, I build it knowing that it will detonate in 5 years. I am responsible for building the bomb to detonate in 5 years, because I BUILT the bomb, I am not a 2nd party that merely observes and knows when the bomb will detonate. I created the bomb, FULLY aware of the consequences, meaning it is my responsibility. It is the same concept with creation. God knows what will happen, and he does it. As for "Fate is what will happen; free will is what can happen. " If fate is what will happen, what does it matter what can happen? If action A is fated to happen, it is inexorable, meaning though action B could have been performed, action A will happen no matter what. The very existence of fate means there is no free will. No matter what "free choices" I make, as my opponent said, "fate is what will happen. " C2: Omnipotence "Also, the implied claim is that there are choices that go against God's will, especially if the choice is more important than its outcome. God wills that the choice exist more than he wills a particular outcome of the choice. " Isaiah 10: 5-7 5 "Woe to the Assyrian, the rod of my anger, in whose hand is the club of my wrath! 6 I send him against a godless nation, I dispatch him against a people who anger me, to seize loot and snatch plunder, and to trample them down like mud in the streets. 7 But this is not what he intends, this is not what he has in mind; his purpose is to destroy, to put an end to many nations. . http://www.biblegateway.com... God uses his omnipotence to fulfill his will. In this case, he seized, looted, plundered, and trampled a nation using his omnipotence. He USED a whole nation to do his bidding, which makes this even more significant. He did not send thunder bolts, earthquakes, or floods. He USED a nation to tear down ANOTHER nation. This is in DIRECT conflict with free will, as God is intervening with both nations and their "free choices". C3: Bible Points to Predestination. "The only valid way to interpret scripture is to interpret the verse with respect to the whole. The whole gives commands again and again and again throughout the whole text. " "Considering that the Bible presumes free will in giving ethical commands again and again, we must interpret the verses that seem to point the other way in this light. " What the Bible presumes is relative to one's interpretation. Given the respect to the scripture as a whole, one can still interpret it as the Bible revealing predestination (i. e. Calvinists). Acts 4:27-28 (YLT) "for gathered together of a truth against Thy holy child Jesus, whom Thou didst anoint, were both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with nations and peoples of Israel, to do whatever Thy hand and Thy counsel did determine before to come to pass. " "See my response to opponent's C1. God engineers all events that happen; this does not violate free will. " See my rebuttals. Genesis 45:4-8 (YLT) "4 And Joseph saith unto his brethren, 'Come nigh unto me, I pray you,' and they come nigh; and he saith, 'I am Joseph, your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt; 5 and now, be not grieved, nor let it be displeasing in your eyes that ye sold me hither, for to preserve life hath God sent me before you. 6 Because these two years the famine is in the heart of the land, and yet are five years, in which there is neither ploughing nor harvest; 7 and God sendeth me before you, to place of you a remnant in the land, and to give life to you by a great escape; 8 and now, ye -- ye have not sent me hither, but God, and He doth set me for a father to Pharaoh, and for lord to all his house, and ruler over all the land of Egypt. " "The problem disappears in the literal translation. Also, see response to C1. " The problem is still apparent. The problem is that Joseph and his brothers were manipulated by God to serve his purpose. Joseph's brothers sold Joseph for their own gain, but God predetermined that action and used it for his own purpose. As verse 5 says, "to preserve life hath God sent me before you. " and verse 7 "God sendeth me before you,Also, see my rebuttals. " Acts 2:23 (YLT) "23 this one, by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, being given out, having taken by lawless hands, having crucified -- ye did slay;" "It doesn't violate anyone's notion of free will for God to know what's going to happen to himself (The passage refers to Jesus). Also, see response to C1. " The significance of Acts 2:23 is HOW Jesus got to the cross. MEN nailed Jesus to the cross. MEN, who are morally responsible for their actions. These men have nailed an innocent man to the cross, Jesus Christ. Surely this act is immoral? But this act was also predetermined by God. These men were predetermined to SIN for God's purpose. I look forward to my opponent's responses.