Re: Blind religion vs. obvious Truth.

Thanks for sharing your experience with that it really helps me to understand where you are coming from. I think how we come through our darkest times is really what defines us, do we become angry and bitter or does it make us humble and desiring only for God's grace. In my own life, I know that I have seeked Him the most in my darkest hours.

I am open to the possibility that you might be right. I have also debated this topic within myself many times but I have always come to the same conclusion that we have to choose for ourselves whether to receive or reject God's grace. However, I do also have some beliefs that go along with what you are saying.

I do believe that God knows who will receive Him or reject Him before we are born, so could those who He already knows will receive His grace be who He is referring to as His chosen? We are His chosen because He knows we will accept His grace, therefore He speaks of us as those He chose, even though it was still us that chose to receive His grace.

This next thing is only partly based on scripture but something that I have always felt in my heart that we have all existed as souls before we came to this Earth and we had a certain relationship with God before we came here, this would explain why some people would be in His fold and others are not. Revelation chapter 12 talks about Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon and his angels. It also says that the dragon took a third of the stars in heaven and cast them to Earth. I believe this war happened before anyone came to Earth, meaning we all existed before we came here and depending on our role in this war and our relationship with God before we came here, that has a big impact on the life we live and if we are among His fold. I realize this is a bit of a stretch and I am certainly not preaching it as doctrine but it is something that I believe and feel deeply in my soul. I would be interested in your opinion on this.