“Would you say that your conclusion concerning free will guides or determines your actions?”
Which actions? My “conclusion” was indeed a conclusion, not something I began with and therefore read into the scripture. If you mean “moral actions,” perhaps, then the doctrine of grace impressed upon me with greater urgency then before the need to ‘shrew my faith by my works,’ as this is the purpose of salvation to begin with. Not as a condition to salvation, but as the purpose of your life and eternity given to you by God. It impressed upon me the fact that nothing I have is my own, but is rather given to me so that I may produce fruit, and that my fruit should abide eternally.
Joh_15:16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
Yes that’s what I meant. It influences, guides or determines action, in whole or part. In this case it seems quite a bit on a deep level:
“…impressed upon me with greater urgency then before the need to ‘shrew my faith by my works,’ … etc. “
I appreciate your patience in this. I think it helps a great deal to have a specific example to refer to when trying to discuss what may be only an abstract term without it.
The purpose of my questions here was to clarify what we are talking about so that differences in terminology are minimized.
I believe what I’ve just read from you is a person explaining how they skillfully used their free will to come to the conclusion that they have no free will.