God's Will

God knows the end from the beginning, but He does not give us all the details at once, except as they are necessary for us for His purpose to be worked out.

Praying according to God's will is sometimes ambiguous. Yet as we respond positively to His covenant, He reveals more and more of His secret plans.

Richard Ritenbaugh, reminding us that before our calling we were clueless, in a state of spiritual darkness, unaware of a better life, states that our lives after our calling could be considered a night and day difference, a flipping of poles from negative. . .

Richard Ritenbaugh, citing Dr. Dobson's warning about the deleterious effects of permissive child-rearing, affirms that the horrendous results we see today, including out-of-control ADHD, defiance of all authority, and rampant narcissism, is a fulfillment . . .

One aspect of sovereignty that causes some confusion is predestination. God's sovereignty does not remove a person's free moral agency — we must still choose.

In the third part of this series, John Ritenbaugh uses the Beast power of Revelation 13 to compare with God's sovereignty. Who will we yield to in the coming years?

John Ritenbaugh claims that millions of people who believe they are in contact with God are hopelessly deceived about Him in five essential ways: They do not understand (1) what causes estrangement between God and mankind, (2) that God under no circumstanc. . .

John Ritenbaugh demonstrates the relationship of God's will, predestination, and choice (or free moral agency). Using the analogy of a child summoned by a parent to clean up his room, he points out that the dawdling, complaining, and other acts of disobedi. . .

Those who emphasize one trait of God, or one doctrine, at the expense of the others run the risk of distorting the truth, creating a grotesque caricature.

Most converted Christians realize that God is sovereign. But sometimes the Bible reveals something about God that makes us uncomfortable. Can we accept it?

John Ritenbaugh focuses upon God's management of mankind. God has consistently moved His creation toward its ultimate purpose, setting the bounds of nations, motivating rulers (Proverbs 12:1) to pursue a certain course of action, sometimes against their wi. . .

Those who have made a covenant with God can be seduced or corrupted unless they make a concerted effort to know God. Knowing God means to realize that God has the right and the power to do with any one of us as He pleases. John the Baptist, when he saw his. . .

Unlike the deplorable picture presented in the world's religions depicting God as a helpless, effeminate, maudlin, hand-wringing sentimentalist, desperately trying to save the world, repeatedly frustrated and thwarted by Satan, John Ritenbaugh brings into . . .

Martin Collins suggests that Generation X spirituality is an eclectic, syncretic, self-centered perverted attempt at displacing God's will with self-absorbed human will, attempting to arrogantly make God's will subservient to theirs. God, demonstrating num. . .

We are assured that even though inexplicable things happen in our lives, God is still sovereign. We must develop childlike faith to trust in Him for solutions.

John Ritenbaugh reiterates that to the called, nothing happens in a vacuum and "time and chance" no longer applies. Like a proactive, responsible parent, God restricts free moral agency to keep His children from getting hurt. Through His foresigh. . .

John Ritenbaugh emphasizes the value of understanding sovereignty as a basic foundational doctrine, providing a link between knowledge and practice as well as providing motivation to yield and conform to God's purpose for us. Understanding sovereignty (1) . . .

John Ritenbaugh emphasizes that prayer is perhaps the most important thing we do in terms of maintaining our salvation. The purpose of prayer is not to overcome God's reluctance, but rather to yield and conform us to His will. The oft quoted slogan 'Prayer. . .

Is God sovereign over angels? What about mankind's choices? God's sovereignty is absolute as He directs events toward the culmination of His plan.

Where does real power reside? All power has its source in God—and not just the kind of power we typically think of.

Richard Ritenbaugh, reflecting on the popular song, "My Way," (popularized by Frank Sinatra) warns that God's Called-out ones should never emulate the haughty and self-willed attitude this song glorifies. God created us in His image, giving us th. . .

Praying without gratitude is like clipping the wings of prayer. Thankfulness is not natural to carnal human nature which loves to grovel as a timid worrywart.

Martin Collins, reflecting that the human conscience can be incrementally conditioned to tolerate sin, decommissioned, and ultimately put to sleep, asserts that God can restore it to usefulness as He did in the lives of Joseph's brothers, by forcing them t. . .

What does Scripture say about free-moral agency? Are we human puppets on a string, manipulated from above? How does free will relate to God's sovereignty?

Most professing Christians agree that God is sovereign, but there is a wide range of beliefs with regard to just how involved God is in their lives.

Richard Ritenbaugh, reflecting on the pop song "My Way" composed by Paul Anka, written for and made famous by Frank Sinatra, observes that to the carnal mind, this song represents a triumph of the human will and a declaration of pride, a determin. . .

A major theme of the book of Ecclesiastes is satisfaction. In his wisdom, Solomon assiduously sought out the answer to the question, "What brings a person true satisfaction?" John Ritenbaugh proposes that God desires far more for us than mere satisfaction:. . .

God 'took pleasure' in Christ's being bruised, not in the pain and suffering that His Son endured, but in the ultimate goal of adding to His Family.

Jesus Christ has full control of the church. Everything of consequence, including the development of our character, is engineered by Him.

All the medieval 'seven deadly sins' could be categorized as a facet of lust. God designed us to have proper desires, just as His desires are always proper.

John Ritenbaugh, continuing his comparison of the timid, insignificant sparrow with the virtually unnoticed, timid Church, reiterates that God has complete oversight over the awesome plan of creating offspring in His image. Consequently, we should not fear. . .

John Ritenbaugh, cuing in on three scriptures, Psalm 11:3-5, Luke 12:7, and Philippians 4:19, reflects on a frightening earthquake in 1971, in which he realized that he was in no way in control of the alarming situation, a relentless shaking that threatene. . .