John 8:35 And the servant abides not in the house for ever: but the Son abides ever. 36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.
[The Desire of Ages pp 324] It is not necessary for us deliberately to choose the service of the kingdom of darkness in order to come under its dominion. We have only to neglect to ally ourselves with the kingdom of light. If we do not co-operate with the heavenly agencies, Satan will take possession of the heart and he will make it his abiding place.
Hence the reason why the genius of the Gospel is to first and foremost, restore one’s ability to choose in a free and clear manner. “If the Son shall make you free you shall be free indeed” and that includes the freedom to choose. One day I saw a very interesting clip, which asked a question that’s pertinent to this study. Here it is: “Lord, why don’t you stop me if you see me doing something stupid?”
It sounds like a sincere plea for help, in preventing a person from making any grave mistake, and it’s true, that at times, The Lord could prevent us from doing something stupid, if we are willing to be stopped. In the instance with Balaam, God tried to stop him, but he insisted on doing something stupid. Therefore, whenever push comes to shove, and the human agent insists on having their own way, God respects their freedom of choice, and very often will permit persons to make very grave mistakes.
Numbers 22: 12 And God said unto Balaam, You shalt not go with them; thou shalt not curse the people: for they are blessed. 20 And God came unto Balaam at night, and said unto him, If the men come to call thee, rise up, and go with them…
May The Lord add His blessing to the study of His word. God bless!