Previous Questions and Answers
"Free will? Calvinism?"
Thanks
again for your response. I have read some Calvinists works but also many non-Calvinists. I accept that a person cannot be born again without
hearing the Gospel. What I am not sure about
is what decides a man's response to that Gospel. It
seems to me that we have two options:
1) It is man's free
will decision to accept the Gospel. In this case I do not see the logic of thanking God
that we accepted it, or praying for other people that they would accept it.
2) A man believes the Gospel based on whether God blesses the Gospel to that man. In
this case God is fully responsible for our salvation and we can logically thank Him for
it.
Questions
& Answers:
Question:
1)
It is man's free will decision to accept the Gospel. In this case I do not see the logic
of thanking God that we accepted it, or praying for other people that they would accept
it.
Answer:
The
Biblical example is that every Christian should pray for others to be saved. Romans 10:1-3 says, "1 Brethren, my heart's desire AND PRAYER TO GOD FOR
ISRAEL IS, THAT THEY MIGHT BE SAVED. 2 For I
bear them record that THEY HAVE A ZEAL OF GOD, BUT NOT ACCORDING TO KNOWLEDGE. 3 For they being ignorant of God's righteousness,
and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto
the righteousness of God."
As
I mentioned before, it causes God to wonder when no one cares enough to be praying for
others to be saved. Isaiah 59:16 says,
"16 And he saw that there was no man, AND WONDERED THAT THERE WAS NO INTERCESSOR:
therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained
him."
We
are commanded to pray for all men -- the end result being that the conditions would be
favorable for the spreading of the truth of God's Word.
1 Timothy 2:1-4 says, "1 I
exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, PRAYERS, intercessions, and giving of
thanks, BE MADE FOR ALL MEN; 2 For kings, and
for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all
godliness and honesty. 3 For this is good and
acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; 4
WHO WILL HAVE ALL MEN TO BE SAVED, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth."
Question:
You
say that man has a choice to love, or to hate Him....but doesn't every unregenerate man
hate God?
Answer:
Look
at Romans 10:1-3 again. Those people do not
hate God. They are actively trying to please
God and do things for Him, but the problem is that they are doing it in ignorance. "2 For I bear them record that THEY HAVE A
ZEAL OF GOD, BUT NOT ACCORDING TO KNOWLEDGE. 3
For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own
righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God."
Notice
that it was the same case with Cornelius in Acts 10:1-6, "1 There was a certain man in Caesarea called
Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,
2 A devout man, and ONE THAT FEARED GOD with all his
Question:
2)
A man believes the Gospel based on whether God blesses the Gospel to that man. In this
case God is fully responsible for our salvation and we can logically thank Him for it.
Answer:
That
statement is pure Calvinism, and is not true according to the Scripture. If that statement were true, then Romans 10:13
could not be true. "For WHOSOEVER shall
call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." That
means "anyone." But if God
"only blesses the gospel" to certain people, then NOT EVERYONE can truly call
upon the name of the Lord and be saved.
If
a person can only get saved if God "blesses the gospel" to that person, then
that would also make 2 Peter 3:9 untrue. "The
Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is
longsuffering to us-ward, NOT WILLING THAT ANY SHOULD PERISH, BUT THAT ALL SHOULD COME TO
REPENTANCE." That says that God is
"NOT WILLING THAT ANY SHOULD PERISH, BUT THAT ALL SHOULD COME TO REPENTANCE."
If
it is really God that is hindering people from getting saved, because He is not
"blessing the gospel" to those people -- then the problem is really God -- not
those people. It is not a problem with people
not loving God, but a problem with God not loving people enough to want them to be saved;
and thus, "blessing the gospel" to them. That
is not logical thinking at all, but blasphemous thinking.
(blaspheme
= "1 : to speak of or address with irreverence 2
: revile, abuse" - Merriam-Webster's 11th Collegiate Dictionary).
Questions:
1)
It is man's free will decision to accept the Gospel. In
this case I do not see the logic of thanking God that we accepted it,
or praying for other people that they would accept it.
2)
A man believes the Gospel based on whether God blesses the Gospel to that man. In this
case God is fully responsible for our salvation and
we can logically thank Him for it.
Answer:
Are
your statements logical? (logic
= "a particular mode of reasoning viewed as valid or faulty" Merriam-Webster's
11th Collegiate Dictionary). I would have to
say that your statements are faulty. If a man
has the free will to accept the gospel, is it logical to then think that he should not
thank God for saving him?
Is
it logical to not pray and thank God for loving us so much that He was willing to send His
Son to earth to suffer and die for our sins, so that we might have the opportunity to be
saved? (John 3:16 says, "FOR GOD SO LOVED
THE WORLD, THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, that whosoever believeth in him should not
perish, but have everlasting life.).
Is
it logical to not pray and thank God for preserving His pure Word so that we could hear
the truth of the gospel and have the chance to accept it?
(Psalms 12:6-7 says, "6 THE
WORDS OF THE LORD ARE PURE WORDS: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven
times. 7 Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, THOU
SHALT PRESERVE THEM FROM THIS GENERATION FOR EVER."
1 Peter 1:23-25 says, "23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed,
but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. 24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of
man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: 25 But THE WORD OF THE LORD ENDURETH FOR EVER. And
THIS IS THE WORD WHICH BY THE GOSPEL IS PREACHED UNTO YOU.')
Is
it logical to not pray and thank God for Him asking for volunteers who will go and
faithfully give out His Word so others can hear it and have a chance to be saved? (Isaiah 6:8 says, "Also I heard the voice of
the Lord, saying, WHOM SHALL I SEND, and WHO WILL GO for us? Then said I, HERE AM I; SEND
ME." Romans 10:13-17 says, "13 For
whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 14 How then shall they call on him in whom they
have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and HOW
SHALL THEY HEAR WITHOUT A PREACHER? 15 And HOW
SHALL THEY PREACH, EXCEPT THEY BE SENT? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of
them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! 16 BUT THEY HAVE NOT ALL OBEYED THE GOSPEL. For
Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? 17
So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.") Is it logical to not thank God for calling those
men to preach? Is it logical to not thank God
that at least some men do respond and are willing to share the truth with those who are
yet lost, and will continue preaching despite those who do not obey and respond to the
gospel?
Your
statements are not logical, but show the extreme ungratefulness of mankind to God for what
He has done. Unthankfulness is a
characteristic of the end times. 2 Timothy
3:1-2 says, "1 This know also, that in
the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For
men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers,
disobedient to parents, UNTHANKFUL, unholy..."
Question:
I
accept that no man is forced to either accept or reject Christ, so in one sense it is down
to that man's free will - but isn't
every decision we make rational?
Answer:
Millions
of decisions are made every hour in this world that are not "rational."
(rational = "having reason or understanding"
Merriam-Webster's 11th Collegiate Dictionary).
Every time a person lights up a cigarette, that person just made an
"irrational" decision. (irrational
= "(1)
: not endowed with reason or understanding (2)
: lacking usual or normal mental clarity or coherence
b : not governed by or according to reason" Merriam-Webster's 11th
Collegiate Dictionary). Lighting up a
cigarette shows that a person does not have understanding or normal mental clarity. The smoke from that cigarette is depositing things
in that person's lungs that are harmful. Is
that rational? That smoke will turn his teeth
and fingers yellow, and will make his breath smell like smoke. Is that rational?
That smoke smell will saturate his clothing, his car, his home, and everyone
who is in his presence while he is smoking. Is
that rational?
Millions
of people today will make the decision to drink alcohol.
Is that a rational decision? No. Proverbs 20:1 says, "Wine is a mocker, strong
drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is NOT WISE."
Millions
of people today will be immoral with someone. Is
that a rational decision? No. Proverbs 6:32-33 says, "32 But whoso
committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his
own soul. 33 A wound and dishonour shall he
get; and his reproach shall not be wiped away." 1
Corinthians 6:18 says, "Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the
body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body."
Question:
Surely
a person will accept or reject Christ based solely on whether they feel to need salvation
- and surely unregenerate man doesn't believe that he needs salvation?
Answer:
Once
again, your statement is pure Calvinism (total depravity of mankind -- to the extent that
he does not even have the power to realize that he needs Christ, or needs to repent and
turn to Christ). That unscriptural teaching
makes the command to "repent" an impossible thing for man to do. (repent
= "1 : to turn from sin and dedicate oneself to the amendment of one's life; 2 a : to feel regret or contrition b : to change one's mind" Merriam-Webster's
11th Collegiate Dictionary).
It
is clear that God commands all men to repent -- to turn from their sin to Him. They are obviously unregenerate at that point; and,
yet, God is commanding them to stop, realize their need, and turn to Him. Luke 13:2-3 says, "2 And Jesus answering
said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans,
because they suffered such things? 3 I tell
you, Nay: but, EXCEPT YE REPENT, YE SHALL ALL LIKEWISE PERISH." Matthew 3:1-2
Notice
in the New Testament how many demon-possessed people came to Christ. Satan and his fallen angels may have been
controlling their bodies, but these people had the desire to come to Christ, and Satan and
his host could not stop them.
God
allows certain things to come into people's lives to show them that they need to repent
and turn to Him. One such example was the
Philippian jailor. Acts 16:25-34 says, "25 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and
sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. 26
And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were
shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed. 27 And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his
sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, HE DREW OUT HIS SWORD, AND WOULD HAVE KILLED
HIMSELF, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. 28
But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. 29 Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and
CAME TREMBLING, and fell down before Paul and Silas, 30
And brought them out, and said, SIRS, WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED? 31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. 32 And
they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night, and
washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. 34 And when he had brought them into his house, he
set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house."
That
is just one way that God has shown a person that he needs to repent and get saved. That man almost killed himself, but he saw his need
through that, and even asked how he could be saved. That
was not God "blessing the gospel" to him. That
was a repentant man asking that the gospel be told unto him.
God uses all sorts of means to get people to realize their emptiness apart
from Him. When they finally humble themselves
and see themselves as a lost sinner, and Jesus as the perfect Son of God and Savior, then
they are ready to be saved. Matthew 18:2-3
says, "2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, 3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be
converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of
heaven." James 4:6-10 says, "6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he
saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the
devil, and he will flee from you. 8 DRAW NIGH
TO GOD, AND HE WILL DRAW NIGH TO YOU. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your
hearts, ye double minded. 9 Be afflicted, and
mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. 10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and
he shall lift you up."
