Can God draw people to him' and not contravene their free will?

[spurly]

This thread is a split from THIS (http://www.iidb.org/vbb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=78629) M&PC thread..

-Krosis M&PC/GRD mod]

{Talking about "The Passion of the Christ"}

Our church rented out the theater and invited our members to bring non-believers. We had over 120 non-believers at the movie on Feb. 29th, and 50 of them were back for church last Sunday. We are hoping God draws them to himself.

Kevin

[Godot]

Originally posted by spurly
Our church rented out the theater and invited our members to bring non-believers. We had over 120 non-believers at the movie on Feb. 29th, and 50 of them were back for church last Sunday. We are hoping God draws them to himself.

Kevin How is it that god can 'draw people to him' and not contravene their free will?

[spurly]

Originally posted by Godot
How is it that god can 'draw people to him' and not contravene their free will?

That's a good question, though I don't know that this forum is the appropriate place to discuss it. However, since you asked, I will give my short answer.

God draws all men and women to him, regardless of who they are. Yet he will not force them to choose him. It's been that way since the beginning when he planted the tree in the Garden. Men and women still have to choose him out of their own free will. He calls all, but only saves the "whoevers" who call on him.

Kevin

[Ultimate Atheist]

Well if he calls me I'll hang with him. So far I just get telemarketers.

[Thesto Neroses]

Originally posted by spurly
God draws all men and women to him, regardless of who they are. Actually, here you are in factual error. You see, God (as described in the Bible and on the lips of every xtian I have ever met, or conversed with) actually repels me.

And since when do you have the OK to speak for the Almighty? What are you, the Mouth of God standing at the Black Gate?

[Hyndis]

Originally posted by Thesto Neroses
Actually, here you are in factual error. You see, God (as described in the Bible and on the lips of every xtian I have ever met, or conversed with) actually repels me.

And since when do you have the OK to speak for the Almighty? What are you, the Mouth of God standing at the Black Gate?

Maybe he was refering to that Jim Caviezel guy as god...

And with the amount of money Mel Gibson is raking in, I'm sure Jesus was well paid for his suffering. ;) :D

[spurly]

He may repel you, but he did try to draw you to himself. You, evidently, have chosen not to allow him to do that. That is where your free will came into play.

Kevin

[Plognark]

but he did try to draw you to himself

Evidence?

*SCREEEEEECH-KERCHUNK!!* <--- the sound of a thread completely derailing. Any mods want to do a split? :D

[edit.. done. ;) -Krosis M&PC/GRD mod]

[Kilgore Trout]

Originally posted by spurly
He may repel you, but he did try to draw you to himself. You, evidently, have chosen not to allow him to do that. That is where your free will came into play.

Kevin

Deuteronomy 2
31 The LORD said to me, "See, I have begun to deliver Sihon and his country over to you. Now begin to conquer and possess his land."
32 When Sihon and all his army came out to meet us in battle at Jahaz, 33 the LORD our God delivered him over to us and we struck him down, together with his sons and his whole army. 34 At that time we took all his towns and completely destroyed them-men, women and children. We left no survivors.


Deuteronomy 3
3 So the LORD our God also gave into our hands Og king of Bashan and all his army. We struck them down, leaving no survivors. 4 At that time we took all his cities. There was not one of the sixty cities that we did not take from them-the whole region of Argob, Og's kingdom in Bashan. 5 All these cities were fortified with high walls and with gates and bars, and there were also a great many unwalled villages. 6 We completely destroyed them, as we had done with Sihon king of Heshbon, destroying every city-men, women and children.

If you would bother to read your OT you would see (a) why god repels a lot of people and (b) why god doesn't draw all people to himself. I suppose god was calling all the little babies in those towns and using the free will will that all babies have they told him to go jump in a lake. Try reading the book of Joshua for a great example of how "god loves all people".

[capsaicin67]

How do we know that god is drawing us to watch The Passion? Easy.

Men wrote the bible. They wrote in the bible that they were directly inspired by god to write what they wrote. We choose to believe them and suspend common sense or skepticism that we would generally apply to any other extraordinary claims made by humans in light of history being littered with scams, hucksters, agendas, exploitation, superstition, and error. Therefore, whatever the bible says is true and the idea that god is "calling" us must also be likely or true! Mel Gibson's movie is about a character in the latter portion of the book written by men a couple of thousand years ago: the bible. Therefore God wants us to see it and it is fully endorsed and certified by the Truth and Goodness Promotional Council of Heaven. It, too, is goodness and truth by association.

or

The bible says X is true. Why do we believe that something is true or good just because it is in the bible? Because the bible and some people say it tells the truth and is good. Thus, the bible is true and good because it says it's true and good. Or at least some people do. Or something.

And thus God [tm]wants us to see The Passion [tm], damn it! Now belly-up and give the man your money and/or ticket! And when you're done don't go thinkin' you're finished, Buster, cause there are a number of other versions of god that want you to patronize their media and characterizations as well! Buck-up! A little more idolatry won't kill you! The gods love all of it! [oops, I forgot that only the bible is true.......]

[OCLonghorn]

Just to call a spade a spade....I think the responses to Spurly were a bit unjustified. Maybe he has some history from other posts that you guys were reacting to besides the ones in this thread.

But otherwise, he was just stating what his church was doing and why...What started as a simple follow-up q&a started to look like a derailing attack.

Anyway, I too would like to see the Passion and let a christian foot the bill for me...I have a mega-church around me too, but I'm sure they budget for that type of stuff and maybe even hand out merit badges and whatnot. Instead, I think I'll approach one of the smaller ones and test their devotion.

[Enlighten Me]

Originally posted by spurly
That's a good question, though I don't know that this forum is the appropriate place to discuss it. However, since you asked, I will give my short answer.

God draws all men and women to him, regardless of who they are. Yet he will not force them to choose him. It's been that way since the beginning when he planted the tree in the Garden. Men and women still have to choose him out of their own free will. He calls all, but only saves the "whoevers" who call on him.

Kevin

Then how do you explain Paul being stricken on the road to Damascus when he was an enthusiastic persecutor of Christians?

[mjbeam]

Originally posted by OCLonghorn
Anyway, I too would like to see the Passion and let a christian foot the bill for me...I have a mega-church around me too, but I'm sure they budget for that type of stuff and maybe even hand out merit badges and whatnot. Instead, I think I'll approach one of the smaller ones and test their devotion.
Why don't you just watch Scarface? It has a lot of violence. You can probably rent it for $0.99 if you look around. They just did a remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. That's got a lot of blood in it and NO SUBTITLES!


-Mike

[Weltall]

Originally posted by spurly
He may repel you, but he did try to draw you to himself. You, evidently, have chosen not to allow him to do that. That is where your free will came into play.

Kevin If 'nothing' is the best that the almighty can do to 'draw me to himself' then he's got some issues...

[braces_for_impact]

Gives the expression "throwing off the yoke" a whole new angle doesn't it?

[coltsfan]

Originally posted by Godot
How is it that god can 'draw people to him' and not contravene their free will?

Well, I guess it depends on what you mean by 'draw people to him.' If you mean that he forces you in such a manner that it is unavoidable then I would say you are correct. However, if He presents an opportunity for you to choose to be drawn to him and you willingly do so, then you made a free choice.

I would say that God constantly presents opportunities for everyone to be drawn to him. Anytime you are presented with a chance to help others and share love with those who can do nothing for you, you can draw yourself closer to God.

Your willingness to freely share love with others helps bring the kingdom of Heaven to Earth. God wants everyone to be drawn to him and see the importance of helping others. Considering how many people are around us that we can interact with daily we have a plethora of opportunities. We all fall short at times, but we are always given a choice.

[Queen of Swords]

spurly,

I would like to know exactly what god does in order to draw me. Specifics, please, not a vague "he draws you". For instance, does he draw me by sending fundamentalists here to insult me and people like me? Or does he draw me with biblical contradictions that can't be reasonably resolved?

You'd think that god, the omniscient creator of the universe, would find more effective ways to draw people.

[Hyndis]

Originally posted by QueenofSwords
spurly,

I would like to know exactly what god does in order to draw me. Specifics, please, not a vague "he draws you". For instance, does he draw me by sending fundamentalists here to insult me and people like me? Or does he draw me with biblical contradictions that can't be reasonably resolved?

You'd think that god, the omniscient creator of the universe, would find more effective ways to draw people.


And the interesting thing is that if this god could managed to put together a coherent reason for me to believe that this god exists, then I might very well be following the requisite steps for being "saved".

Proof is a funny thing...without it, you don't have a case. With enough of it, you can prove anything. :D

[southernhybrid]

I don't think that the nonexistent god was responsible for drawing the people to your church, spurly. Xians have traditionally used strong emotional appeals to draw new followers to their myth. Some weak minded or searching individuals probably do find the blood, gore and emotion of The Passion as reason enough to be drawn to Xianity. It does not equate that being attracted to something highly emotional equals a supernatural experience.

When I was a child I attended many Billy Graham Crusades. The emotional appeal was overwhelming as the choir sang softly and the oration of Graham mesmerized those looking for something that satisfied their emotions, and made them feel special or chosen. At the time the experience seemed spiritually enlightening to me. My subjective feelings didn't make the message true. It only exemplified the ability of the messenger to manipulate some people through eloquent words and emotional appeal.

[Queen of Swords]

Originally posted by spurly
He may repel you, but he did try to draw you to himself. You, evidently, have chosen not to allow him to do that.

Why would anyone want to be drawn close to someone who repels them? Let's say I have a boyfriend whom I leave; he subsequently turns stalker and sends me underwear that's been slashed into tatters with a knife. Will you now say that he has tried to draw me to himself, but that my choice not to allow him to do so is a wrong one (and will subsequently be punished)?

[Queen of Swords]

Originally posted by southernhybrid
My subjective feelings didn't make the message true.

Excellent point.

My brother, the most intelligent and clear-minded christian I know, watched the Passion and said immediately afterwards, "It was great, it was so biblically accurate, it was so moving, I want to watch it again."

Yesterday I spoke to him again and he said, "My friend and I were discussing if a person could lose that many pints of blood and live. Oh, and you're right - that woman who wiped Jesus's face wasn't in the bible. Plus, there wasn't a whole lot of dialogue and other interaction compared to all the gore."

Go bro! :)

[spurly]

Originally posted by QueenofSwords
spurly,

I would like to know exactly what god does in order to draw me. Specifics, please, not a vague "he draws you". For instance, does he draw me by sending fundamentalists here to insult me and people like me? Or does he draw me with biblical contradictions that can't be reasonably resolved?

You'd think that god, the omniscient creator of the universe, would find more effective ways to draw people.

I believe it is different for different people. We are not told "This is how God draws people to him", but if I were to venture a guess, here's what I would say.

1. We were created with the image of God stamped on us. That means that we were created with some part of God already instilled in us. His love, an eternal soul, morality and holiness.

2. His holy Spirit works with the part of us that was created to be like God to draw us to him. He convicts us of sin, and leads us to righteousness so that we can avoid judgment.

3. However, he won't contravene your free will. If you choose to walk away from him, he lets you go, even though it breaks his heart.

Kevin

[Plognark]

3. However, he won't contravene your free will. If you choose to walk away from him, he lets you go, even though it breaks his heart.

Right....and then he tosses me in a pit of hell-fire for all eternity for the offense. :rolleyes:

[Beetle]

Originally posted by spurly
3. However, he won't contravene your free will. If you choose to walk away from him, he lets you go, even though it breaks his heart.

Kevin This is where arminian theology runs into a problem. If that's the case, then the basis of somebody being "saved" or not is their work. If the person makes the decision to believe of their own free will, then they are saved, if they decide to reject god, then they are damned. Doesn't that remove grace and Jesus' death a step or two away from the core of the matter, and put the whole thing on the person?

Of course, calvinism says that god sees your free will, clear cuts it, and builds an eight-lane highway across it. But at least it's logically consistent, if mildly horrifying.

[spurly]

Originally posted by Beetle
This is where arminian theology runs into a problem. If that's the case, then the basis of somebody being "saved" or not is their work. If the person makes the decision to believe of their own free will, then they are saved, if they decide to reject god, then they are damned. Doesn't that remove grace and Jesus' death a step or two away from the core of the matter, and put the whole thing on the person?

Of course, calvinism says that god sees your free will, clear cuts it, and builds an eight-lane highway across it. But at least it's logically consistent, if mildly horrifying.

I don't see how free will negates God's grace at all. His grace is offered to all, and those who accept it receive it - with no strings attached. I don't see the logic in your argument.

Kevin

[Queen of Swords]

Originally posted by spurly
1. We were created with the image of God stamped on us. That means that we were created with some part of God already instilled in us. His love, an eternal soul, morality and holiness.

Are you saying that we are born moral and holy? I've heard more times than I can count that we are born evil, sinful and depraved and that even babies sin (thanks, Magus!).

This small God-part seems insufficient to counteract the rest of the "sin nature". To use an analogy, if someone in an auditorium was whispering "spurly, spurly" while Nine Inch Nails was performing, would you hear that person?

2. His holy Spirit works with the part of us that was created to be like God to draw us to him. He convicts us of sin, and leads us to righteousness so that we can avoid judgment.

OK, no argument there.

3. However, he won't contravene your free will. If you choose to walk away from him

Firstly, I wouldn't call this a choice any more than I would say I had a choice whether or not to believe in gravity. All the evidence pointed to it, and when I jumped up, I didn't float off like a helium balloon. Similarly, with god, all the evidence pointed to the christian god not existing, and when I prayed, there was no response.

Secondly, God knows what he has to do in order to make me believe in his existence. He needs to present evidence. If he can't be bothered to do so, he is making a choice to play hide and seek with me, perhaps forgetting that I'm too old for games like that.

he lets you go, even though it breaks his heart.

I believe the heartbreak is assuaged by the smell of burning atheist that drifts up forever from hell, yea, a pleasing odor unto the Lord.

While I do appreciate the fact that your christianity focuses much more on God's love than on screaming "you arrogant obnoxious jerks" at us, I feel that your last statement glosses over some biblical concepts. You might as well say that OJ Simpson let Nicole go, even though it broke his heart.

[Plognark]

I don't see how free will negates God's grace at all. His grace is offered to all, and those who accept it receive it - with no strings attached. I don't see the logic in your argument.

Kevin

Perhaps you want to rethink the "no strings attached" part a bit. Go read your bible buddy.
And I, personally, don't see the logic in the above assertion :confused:

[mjbeam]

Originally posted by spurly
I don't see how free will negates God's grace at all. His grace is offered to all, and those who accept it receive it - with no strings attached. I don't see the logic in your argument.

Kevin
Yeah, it's pretty hard to grasp. If you accept god you go to heaven, if you don't you suffer forever in a lake of fire. That's a pretty good sized string tied right around the gonads.


-Mike

[spurly]

Originally posted by QueenofSwords
Originally posted by spurly
1. We were created with the image of God stamped on us. That means that we were created with some part of God already instilled in us. His love, an eternal soul, morality and holiness.

Are you saying that we are born moral and holy? I've heard more times than I can count that we are born evil, sinful and depraved and that even babies sin (thanks, Magus!).

I'm not saying that we were born moral and holy, but I am also not an advocate of the docrine of original sin. I never have been. I don't believe that one is born with sin on him before he is even capable of choosing right and wrong. When talking about the coming days, (I can't remember where it is in the OT, but it is there), God says that a time is coming when a man will not be punished for the sin of his fathers, but each one will be judged for his own sin. That's where we are today. The docrine of original sin, IMHO, is a misdirected doctrine. Are we born with an inclination to sin? Maybe. But we are not born a sinner where we have to pay the price for the sins of the generations before us. The souls that sins is the one who will die.


This small God-part seems insufficient to counteract the rest of the "sin nature". To use an analogy, if someone in an auditorium was whispering "spurly, spurly" while Nine Inch Nails was performing, would you hear that person?


I don't know. But I know that sometimes God does come in the small whisper like he did with Elijah, and sometimes he speaks loudly like he did with Job. (And no I have never heard an audible voice)

2. His holy Spirit works with the part of us that was created to be like God to draw us to him. He convicts us of sin, and leads us to righteousness so that we can avoid judgment.

OK, no argument there.

3. However, he won't contravene your free will. If you choose to walk away from him

Firstly, I wouldn't call this a choice any more than I would say I had a choice whether or not to believe in gravity. All the evidence pointed to it, and when I jumped up, I didn't float off like a helium balloon. Similarly, with god, all the evidence pointed to the christian god not existing, and when I prayed, there was no response.

I'm not so sure the evidence is not there. He puts the evidence around us every day in creation. He has also, as the word said, planted eternity in our hearts. In doing so he has made all of us long for that something more - God himself.

Secondly, God knows what he has to do in order to make me believe in his existence. He needs to present evidence. If he can't be bothered to do so, he is making a choice to play hide and seek with me, perhaps forgetting that I'm too old for games like that.

Please understand that I am not trying to get on to you, but I have to ask this question. Why should we be able to set up the parameters by which we will believe God's existence. If he is God, shouldn't he get to set up the rules? If not, then is he really God or is he just conforming to our version of what God should be like?

As a parent, do you let the child determine how things will be, or do you, in your wisdom, set up the guidelines of the household in a way that you know is best?

he lets you go, even though it breaks his heart.

I believe the heartbreak is assuaged by the smell of burning atheist that drifts up forever from hell, yea, a pleasing odor unto the Lord.

I don't think God is ever pleased when people walk away from him. I think that is why he, like in the parable of the prodigal son, waits and waits longingly for us to return to him. "God is patient toward you, not willing that any perish, but that all come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9)

While I do appreciate the fact that your christianity focuses much more on God's love than on screaming "you arrogant obnoxious jerks" at us, I feel that your last statement glosses over some biblical concepts. You might as well say that OJ Simpson let Nicole go, even though it broke his heart.

I always thought OJ was guilty, by the way. But I wasn't on the jury! If he was innocent, and I thought he was guilty, that proves one thing - I'm glad I'm not judge because I would misjudge a lot of people. {Please ignore me as I chased that rabbit}

Kevin

[mjbeam]

Originally posted by spurly
I'm not saying that we were born moral and holy, but I am also not an advocate of the docrine of original sin. I never have been. I don't believe that one is born with sin on him before he is even capable of choosing right and wrong. When talking about the coming days, (I can't remember where it is in the OT, but it is there), God says that a time is coming when a man will not be punished for the sin of his fathers, but each one will be judged for his own sin. That's where we are today. The docrine of original sin, IMHO, is a misdirected doctrine. Are we born with an inclination to sin? Maybe. But we are not born a sinner where we have to pay the price for the sins of the generations before us. The souls that sins is the one who will die.
So you are saying that god used to be unjust, but that was the old god. The new Dr. Phil version is a lot more fair.

I don't know. But I know that sometimes God does come in the small whisper like he did with Elijah, and sometimes he speaks loudly like he did with Job. (And no I have never heard an audible voice)
And sometimes he doesn't speak at all.

I'm not so sure the evidence is not there. He puts the evidence around us every day in creation. He has also, as the word said, planted eternity in our hearts. In doing so he has made all of us long for that something more - God himself.
Even if I was to grant that the universe was created by a god why would I think that it was created by your god?

Please understand that I am not trying to get on to you, but I have to ask this question. Why should we be able to set up the parameters by which we will believe God's existence. If he is God, shouldn't he get to set up the rules? If not, then is he really God or is he just conforming to our version of what God should be like?

Who else can decide the parameters of my belief but me? If I set my standards of evidence too low I could end up believing all kinds of crazy things. I could end up in a boat on the Red Sea looking for chariot parts or something silly like that.

As a parent, do you let the child determine how things will be, or do you, in your wisdom, set up the guidelines of the household in a way that you know is best?
But I'm not a child Spurly.

I don't think God is ever pleased when people walk away from him. I think that is why he, like in the parable of the prodigal son, waits and waits longingly for us to return to him. "God is patient toward you, not willing that any perish, but that all come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9)
I don't believe he exists so how can I walk away from him.

Please take the time to explain to me why you don't believe in the worlds other religions. Do you think that you would be a christian right now if you have been born and raised in Saudi Arabia? This should give you valuable insight into why I don't believe in yours.


-Mike

[Starboy]

Originally posted by spurly
God draws all men and women to him, regardless of who they are.

spurly, I think you got it backwards. All men are drawn to some extent to those with charisma, power and ability. We call these people leaders or heroes. Why people are even drawn to fictional characters with these attributes all the time. It is natural for people to do this. This goes way back to Ulysses and Odysseus and most likely way before those fictional characters. Unfortunately there are these lying deceiving con artists that have got people to the point where they think that a fictional character with an unlimited amount of these attributes is real. I am sure that in ancient times there were story tellers that would let people think that Ulysses or Odysseus were real. Of course we know they are not real because the stories about them are just too bizarre to be real. Anybody today that went around tricking people into thinking that the creatures and people in those stories were real to the point of starting churches and taking people’s money as well as trying to get laws passed to protect and display in public places the stories and wisdom of Ulysses or Odysseus would certainly be looked upon with suspicion if not arrested for the frauds they were. Then we have Christianity.

Starboy

[Queen of Swords]

Originally posted by spurly
Are we born with an inclination to sin? Maybe. But we are not born a sinner where we have to pay the price for the sins of the generations before us.

Reasonable enough.

I don't know. But I know that sometimes God does come in the small whisper like he did with Elijah, and sometimes he speaks loudly like he did with Job.

God seems to have been far more active in reaching people in the Old Testament than he is today.

I'm not so sure the evidence is not there. He puts the evidence around us every day in creation.

Sorry, spurly, but I just don't think, "Evidence of god's existence" when I look at the bacteria which cause tuberculosis, for instance. Plus, there are enough flaws in "creation" to make me doubt a benevolent/intelligent god's existence right there.

He has also, as the word said, planted eternity in our hearts.

This is meaningless to me. You might as well have said, "He planted vividity in our hearts" or "He planted infinite nirvana in our hearts".

In doing so he has made all of us long for that something more - God himself.

That's an unproven assertion. I don't long for something, much less God. I'm happy as I am.

Please understand that I am not trying to get on to you, but I have to ask this question. Why should we be able to set up the parameters by which we will believe God's existence.

Because belief in God's existence is what may lead me to repentance and acceptance of Christ as my savior, which is what will keep me out of hell. In other words, I know what it will take for me to be saved. The question is, does God know, and if he does, is he willing to do it? I'm not asking for a repeat of the cross sacrifice and I'm not asking for a burning bush. All I ask is for him to show me that he exists.

If he is God, shouldn't he get to set up the rules?

He's already setting up the rules, isn't he? I mean, sending people to hell if they commit even one sin. I'm not asking him to change that. I'm asking for evidence.

If a doctor says to me, "You have cancer", I will ask to see CT scans or biopsy results, even if that doctor is a close friend. It's just a matter of evidence. I'm not implying that the doctor is a liar, and my request for evidence doesn't mean that the doctor is lowered from his position of knowledge and authority.

If not, then is he really God or is he just conforming to our version of what God should be like?

To me, an individual with power who sets up rules and then punishes all people who do not follow those rules - with no input from the people about those rules - is a despot, a dictator or a tyrant. I don't have a version of what god should be like - I'm just giving my opinion of the current version.

As a parent, do you let the child determine how things will be, or do you, in your wisdom, set up the guidelines of the household in a way that you know is best?

Again, I'm not asking to run the show ("determine how things will be"). Besides, following this analogy, the parent would have to be absent, communicating with the child via scraps of paper shoved under the door, and yet prepared to kill the child the moment the child picked his nose or ate too much cake. And yet this would all be a good and loving system.

I don't think God is ever pleased when people walk away from him. I think that is why he, like in the parable of the prodigal son, waits and waits longingly for us to return to him.

Well, that's nice for him. He doesn't have to do anything but wait - and eventually punish. Not a whole lot of effort on his part.

If I loved someone, but they had the wrong impression of me or were afraid of me, I would tell them so. I wouldn't sit around waiting for them to eventually change their minds, finally pulling out a shotgun when I realized they weren't going to.

[Beetle]

Originally posted by spurly
I don't see how free will negates God's grace at all. His grace is offered to all, and those who accept it receive it - with no strings attached. I don't see the logic in your argument.

Kevin It negates grace by removing the determining power from the god and placing it on the human being. Ephesians 2:8-9 says "for it is by grace that you have been saved, through faith -- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of god -- not by works so that no one can boast."

But in the scenario you're painting, there is ground for boasting. The saved can pat themselves on the back for being smart enough to join the winning side. The difference between them and those who are broiled for all eternity isn't in what the god does, it's in what they did themselves (make the right decision and live, make the wrong one and fry).

[DBT]

You, evidently, have chosen not to allow him to do that. That is where your free will came into play.

Kevin

Not true - what you call God's attempt to draw us to Him, may only be a case of mild indigestion.
Unless your God clearly presents Himself to us, we do not have the information to make the decision to 'believe' in Him. Without reliable information, we have no choice in the matter, and therefore no free will.