The Highway Forums General Discussion Theology Discussion Forum Is man required to "choose" in order to be saved?

Blade,

Are you saying that men are but helpless puppets who do nothing of their own volition? If that is true, then no man can be justly condemned for what he does because he will be able to say at the Judgment, "I couldn't help myself; God made me do it!" But the truth is that God's predestination doesn't force anyone to do anything that isn't in accordance with their will. We see this in the crucifixion of Christ, where men most willingly nailed Jesus to the cross AND God had foreordained that they should do this exactly as they did in eternity. (Acts 2:22, 23; 3:18; 4:26-28) BOTH are true; God's sovereignty and man's responsibility.

Likewise in salvation, God predestinated a certain number of sinners to be saved by faith in Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit, working in conjunction with the Word of God regenerates the spiritual dead soul of a person, giving him/her a new nature or disposition. This new nature is inclined toward God and is naturally opposed to sin; the opposite of what the old nature was. So, as a sinner naturally hates God and loves to commit sin, likewise the regenerated sinner loves God and hates sin. Consequently, this born again sinner naturally repents and turns to Christ in faith. It is NOT God the Spirit who repents and believes. It is the person who does these two things, most willingly and by choice. Men always do that which is most desirable to them at any given moment. They are never forced to do anything against their will... NEVER! It is always man's choice to do what he does.

There is no conflict here whatsoever, which the ultra hyper-Calvinists are want to find. The repentance and faith required (prerequisites) for justification are indeed gifts of God which are the fruit of regeneration. They are of grace and thus their origin is with God and not man so that no one can boast. And, it is the individual who actually repents and believes, not God. The person is responsible to repent and believe not God. In fact, ALL men are responsible to repent and believe, but only those who have been given a new nature, who have been regenerated have the desire and ability to do so. That desire and ability, again is of grace and not of man's creation. Yet there is still the necessity that man choose to repent and believe upon Christ. Those who are regenerated will do so infallibly because they are predisposed to do so. <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

In His Grace,