Free will

According to most Christian theologians, "Free-Will" is not the same thing as free choice.

     Many Christians have come to believe that God has given each individual the power of Free-Will, the ability to freely make a choice unaffected any internal or external conditions. 

     This doctrine of Free-Will violates the laws of Cause and Effect. It says that a choice can be made that is not effected by any other thoughts or ideas.

     But the doctrine of Free-Will is necessary to explain how evil can exist in a world that God said was perfect.

      Jesus said, "By their fruits ye shall know them."  So how could a perfect being - an angel - Lucifer - commit sin and fall from grace? This was a tough question for Christian theologians to answer. From the second or third century onward most Christians believed that not only has God always known what choices individuals will make, but he has actually determined those choices - the doctrine of predestination.  While this doctrine explains everything, it leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Therefore most Christians abandon it in favor of the doctrine of Free Will.  This makes individuals responsible for the consequences of their choices. They teach that all choices are made consciously and freely - contrary to common sense.

Whether or not everything is predetermined by God, the majority of our choices are conditioned by our programming and our biology.. This why God does not punish us but lets us work out our own problems.