Acts 14:1-18 ~ The Preaching of the Gospel in Iconium and Lystra

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Excerpt:

God persuades us by the power of His Holy Spirit in our hearts. He ministers to us. He convinces us. He persuades us. But we still have a free will process. That is why it is called persuasion. I do not know if you have noticed but it is not just words that the Lord uses to persuade us. Sometimes it is other persuasion, you know? Circumstantial persuasion. Because out of His love we will obey.

We dictate to God how we are going to go but we are going to go. Because whom the Lord loves He disciplines. And if you are without discipline then you have an illegitimate claim to be a child of God. God will discipline you. Our disobedience after salvation does not mean that we are not children of God. Just like being in a family, if the children disobey it does not mean they are not your kids anymore. They are still family members, at least for now. But we can be disobedient children of God. It sounds like a contradiction but you can be a child of God and still fight against the Lord. We all do it. We are stubborn. We do not want to do things the Lord’s way.