Hi, Grip
I know you're "asking for it", and this is your thread; so here goes >
To what degree do you see this control?
absolute
God is almighty; so, in any case, I understand how nothing and no one can move or push God around in order to do anything. And whatsoever God is committed to doing, this is guaranteed. So, we do well to always trust God to do what He is committed to doing.
But for personal application > we do experience making choices, therefore having free will. But are we really in control, of our own selves . . . of anything? My opinion is our control is always the tail of the dog.
Also, on the personal experience level >
"God resists the proud" (in James 4:6, 1 Peter 5:5).
And God's resistance is almighty, directly to a person and/or He is almightily managing circumstances to resist a person. So, no matter who a wrong person is who we are dealing with, we have God effectively resisting that person perfectly how God pleases. And while we ourselves as children of God can get upset and downcast and nasty about how things are going > this could be exposing which spirit in us has had us doing what we are doing. So, God could have known we are acting in ego, and so He has resisted us so Satan does not take us as far into trouble as he would. So, the control of God's resistance is good . . . caring.
And we have in Job chapter one how the LORD dictated what Satan could and could not do to Job. And with this dictation, I understand, was God's absolute control of Satan; because if Satan really had autonomous ability to do what he pleased, I doubt very much he would have held himself to what the LORD dictated he could and could not do. There is a reason practical for the fire of hell; evil beings will not negotiate; they are so stubborn that only fire can manage them > in my opinion.
Is God the Will and Design behind the nature of fallen Angels?
"'Known to God from eternity are all His works.'" (Acts 15:18)
His works include how He has redeemed us through Jesus. So, I would say, to apply this scripture, that if God knew He would redeem us, He knew the angels would fall and then Satan would take down Adam and Eve.
And was this all in His control? The Bible says Jesus was meant to have "the preeminence" "in all things" (Colossians 1:18). So, my opinionated application of this is that all along Jesus was meant to be the very first Man to live a perfect life on this planet. Adam and Eve, as creatures were never planned to live perfectly, even at the creature level. They are an object lesson of how much any of us in our created and human natured wills has any chance, at all, without Jesus.
Only with God can we have real control . . . and this not independent human control which can be an issue of our egos. But in Jesus we share with God in His almighty Spirit of His love (Romans 5:5) which does not merely control people and make things happen, but in us we share in His own immunity almighty to control evil spirit things like fear > 1 John 4:18.
So, it is wise not to try to do our own choosing and controlling, just because we will be fooling ourselves, and being not humble to acknowledge God as the only One worthy to take care of us and guide us and keep us safe from boredom and loneliness and worry and unforgiveness and dominating and dictatorial drives for pleasure and excitement.
Or, would you say God Created all things Good, and by free will provided, Creation deviated from God’s design?
Yes, God created all things "very good", His word says in Genesis chapter one. But, even though all was created "very good" . . . look at how Adam and Eve fell. How ever can what is "very good" cause its own self to fall to Satan?
My opinions are that: God never was committed to letting creature beings prove themselves; because they would be missing out on sharing with Jesus; and they as creatures were able to be overpowered by Satan's evil spirit > Ephesians 2:2 > corrupting them to become disobedient.
So, if I am right, this shows how much, really, we need to depend always on the LORD in us, to keep us safe from evil spirit emotions and feelings and drives and thinking, and to continually guide us in His love.
Because God is love, He will not settle for us having less than His own Son Jesus. So, being successful as a creature in some created and human will is not enough. Plus, we see how readily even God's "very good" created humans fell to Satan. So, I consider there is no in between.
[QUOTEBy saying “control”... do you mean everything is pre-determined, or do you mean... by having omniscience, God can use all things to His Glory, despite deviations, due to free Will, occurring?[/QUOTE]Ok > all is known to God because all is in His control. Like I offered, before, you can't really know the future unless you have control of it.
And about free will > we experience ourselves making choices, apart from God. But if I can make a choice in separation from God, isn't this a problem? I mean if sin is separation from God, as some number of free will believers will claim > free will means being still in sin, possibly!!
And is there middle ground? Can you be free from God blessing and also free from Satan's evil spirit messing?
There are people who want to think that it would be slavery if all their willing was managed by God. But if we are not with Jesus, we are slaves of sin, not free > Romans 6:17.
Even so, it is clear how we will answer for how we have lived. And we will reap what we have sown > Galatians 6:7-8.
And our Apostle Paul does say,
"for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." (Philippians 2:13)
So, to me this means God in me will work me to will whatsoever God knows He wants me to do. And God has His will for me, at every moment. So, at every moment, then, I trust, I am wise to submit to God in order to discover what actually He has me will to do. And enjoy sharing with Him, sweetly in His love.
And how can I be smart enough and fast enough to figure out at each moment what our Heavenly Father desires for me to do???? So I need, then, to simply be submissive to Him all the time, and flow with how He creates for me to love Him and care for any and all people.
So, I guess we could say this > the best control is in God's loving through us.
But ones claim, if I understand them right, that if we did not have free will to choose to sin, we could not love God. But Jesus can not sin, and He loves our Father just fine, I would say