FREE WILL: (noun) the power of acting without the constraint of necessity or fate; the ability to act at one’s own discretion.
We left off with this thought: Father God allows satan to test us! Satan gets to test us. For Love can only truly be tested in a place of freewill with two trees in the garden! (two choices and whispers to eat from the wrong one. And the reminder this we see in the Garden of Eden).
Did you know and realise that all three interactions of God and Satan, they are one and the same?
The Garden of Eden, the story of Job and Peter being sifted by Satan, they are one and the same, apart from one thing! GRACE!
Do you know what ‘Grace‘ is? Grace is not a reason to sin but a place of refuge when we do. Again Grace is a PLACE OF REFUGE WHEN WE DO SIN.
Grace, is the how and way Peter made it back and became who he did!
Grace is why Jesus returned and revealed Himself to Peter alone, after raising from the dead.
Grace was David’s key to falling and ending up as the Lord said “a man after His own heart”.
David was one of the only men and maybe the only man, who seemed to be able to live in the years ahead of his life, as though he was in the new testament (I wonder maybe if he was living backwards from New Testament to old Testament ?)
I believe the way to understanding freewill is:
Father God saying” My son and daughter here is the fruit that was plucked from the Tree of Good and Evil! Now I have restored it, but I’m asking you, will you place it back on the Tree branch where it belongs? And will you instead Eat from the Tree of Life beside it”? My child, will you?
Wow! Selah here as questions might be coming like, Jesus, where is the tree of Good and Evil? and where actually is the Tree of Life?
KEYS: His blood paid for and opened up the way for us to place the fruit back on the tree.
The water provided the invitation to partake of the fruit of the tree of Life!
Two substances came out of the Lord’s pierced side: blood and water.
Blood is for redemption, to deal with sins (John 1:29; Heb. 9:22) for the purchasing of the church (Acts 20:28).
Water is for imparting life, to deal with death (John 12:24; John 3:14-15) for the producing of the church (Eph. 5:29-30).
The Lord’s death, on the negative side, takes away our sins, and on the positive side, imparts life into us. Hence, it has two aspects: the redemptive aspect and the life-imparting aspect.
In conclusion, His intention was we would give Him the present, which we think we own, and our Freewill, and in exchange we would pick up His will.
This is the only way to truly step into and live in abundance! He clearly said this in John 10:10
John 10:10 (TPT)
“A thief has only one thing in mind—he wants to steal, slaughter, and destroy. But I have come to give you everything in abundance, more than you expect —life in its fullness until you overflow”!
This was Peter’s story, Job’s story, David’s story and can be our story, if we choose it.
It poses a question from the first part of the topic of Free will: Do our choices affect our, those around us and generations in front of us fate?
Absolutely! All we need to do is look at all the stories and characters throughout the bible to see both outcomes, and know we need to choose wisely!
What an amazing journey we have been on, if you missed a part here is a link to the first part and at the bottom of each is a tab to move to the next part.
Challenge time
1. Have you ever truly given the Lord your freewill ? If yes! Maybe ask Him if there are areas you are still holding onto and when He shows you ? Write them down? And if No, would you like to?.
For both yes and no answers, hold the same prayer. Like, Jesus I freely choose to give You my freewill in every area of my life (you can pause here and add the areas He has shown you). I choose instead to pick up your Will for my life thank you Jesus, Amen
1. Now maybe say a prayer like Jesus would You now saturate me with Your blood to wash away my sins and pour Your living water on me. I choose to place the fruit You have given me back on the tree of good and evil, and instead choose to pick and eat from the Tree of Life. Thank you Jesus. Amen
2. Selah! Here you could read over your journal and ask the Lord if there is anything else on His mind? Listen and write what He says.
3. Spend time Thanking Him in your personal way
It is not by consequence this series finished on part 11 I believe. For 11 means chaos and payment for what has been done. … It is the number of judgement, of final words and chaos. Number 11 often appears in places where people should be held responsible for their actions. A perfect part to finish with knowing because of what Jesus did for us we live in a season of GRACE and through it have free will choice to repent and start afresh as New.
Father thank You for this time we have spent together. Your leading, direction, Love, Grace, Mercy and most of all redemption. Help us to take all You have given and imparted to us, to be good stewards, who are able to pass it on with Interest to the generation in front and behind us. In Jesus name. Amen
Craig Patten
Itinerate Pastor/Prophet
Encounter Ministries
