| IIIIITHE1IIIII said:
While God never actually did anything to affect this boat driver's decision, surely, as an almighty deity, he should have known what direction the driver would choose even before it made the decision? Even if his will is free, God is still able to look one/infinite steps ahead. God knows why this person chose the specific direction that it chose.
The same thing can be said about any person and/or criminal: God can fully understand the reasoning from their perspective, and sympathize with their decisions, no matter how horrible or evil it may look from a non-omnipotent point of view, There is always a reason to why people choose to make decisions that are looked upon as evil actions, and God is aware of every possible reason there may be. |
Again, you're still constraining yourself to a linear flow of time (and it's totally understandable, as it's the only thing we know). To God, there is no "one / infinite steps ahead", there is only now. For Him, the past, present, and future are all His now, as best we can understand it. (This is where it sucks to be a temporal being, chained to the flow of time.)
Does he understand our motivations, though? Absolutely. Which is why if someone commits a heinous crime from our point of view, they may or may not be as culpable in His eyes as someone that knew full well what they were doing was wrong, and chose to do it anyway. He judges us not just on our actions, but our very hearts and souls. And while evil actions are very much held into account, how much more so are our instincts, even if we do not act upon it? Jesus Himself said that all have fallen short of the glory of God, and gave examples of how even evil thoughts were as bad as actually committing the deed. So yes, God knows our motivations. He also knows we're flawed. It's why He gave us a way out, when He really had no good reason to do so. We certainly don't deserve it.
Another thought: If a being is omniscient, then they also have the power to reign in that omniscience, if they will it to be so. Christ did so, and there's no reason for me to believe God Himself is incapable of the feat. Counter-intuitive, sure, but if we're talking about a being that can create the entire universe in six days, it's not too much of a stretch to believe He can not have to exercise all of His ability, either, and give us that free will.
