themuzicman
Well-known member
One of the views of determinism is that the future already exists, and all things that happen were created in the same moment.
Namely, the problem is cause and effect. In reality as we perceive it, if I stand on earth and hold a ball above the ground and release it, gravity will cause the ball to fall to the ground.
However, if all of time were created in the same moment, the ball hits the floor in that same moment that I release it. Thus, the cause of the ball falling isn't gravity, but rather that this moment was created with the ball hitting the floor, and the effect of gravity over time is just an illusion.
Why is this a problem?
Well, first, there is the deception of the illusion of cause and effect in the way we experience time, but more importantly, it has to do with sin causing judgment. If the judgment is created in the same moment as the choice to sin and the sin itself, then the choice cannot be the cause of the sin, and the sin cannot be the cause of that judgment. If the choice isn't the cause of the sin, and the sin isn't isn't the cause of the judgment, then no one can claim that the sin is unjust, or that the judgment is just.
Thus, we must conclude that if one believes that every moment of time has either always been created or that God created all of history in one moment, then one's theology cannot reflect the bible's doctrine of sin, judgment, and justification, because the bible is clear that our sin is the cause of judgment, and that we need justification from unjust acts.
And, in reality, this means that the idea that God cannot experience before and after is a specifically unbiblical idea.
Namely, the problem is cause and effect. In reality as we perceive it, if I stand on earth and hold a ball above the ground and release it, gravity will cause the ball to fall to the ground.
However, if all of time were created in the same moment, the ball hits the floor in that same moment that I release it. Thus, the cause of the ball falling isn't gravity, but rather that this moment was created with the ball hitting the floor, and the effect of gravity over time is just an illusion.
Why is this a problem?
Well, first, there is the deception of the illusion of cause and effect in the way we experience time, but more importantly, it has to do with sin causing judgment. If the judgment is created in the same moment as the choice to sin and the sin itself, then the choice cannot be the cause of the sin, and the sin cannot be the cause of that judgment. If the choice isn't the cause of the sin, and the sin isn't isn't the cause of the judgment, then no one can claim that the sin is unjust, or that the judgment is just.
Thus, we must conclude that if one believes that every moment of time has either always been created or that God created all of history in one moment, then one's theology cannot reflect the bible's doctrine of sin, judgment, and justification, because the bible is clear that our sin is the cause of judgment, and that we need justification from unjust acts.
And, in reality, this means that the idea that God cannot experience before and after is a specifically unbiblical idea.