Although God is sovereign over all things, He has chosen to give humanity free will. This freedom to make our own moral choices without outside coercion is an extraordinary gift. Whereas it is a priceless blessing, the misuse of free will carries serious consequences.  

Why would God entrust humanity with such tremendous liberty? Why was free will so essential to His purpose? To understand, we must go back to God's intention in creating mankind. His desire was to create humans in His image and likeness (Genesis 1:26) who would live in a loving relationship with Him. Such a relationship cannot exist where there is no freedom to choose.