I don't think that election is specifically referred to although Paul is discussing it in the chapter immediately preceeding, that is, in regards to predestination and God's calling.
Earlier in the chapter it does.......
Rom 9:9-13 For this is the word of promise, At this time will I come, and Sara shall have a son. And not only this; but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac; (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;) It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. (KJV)
I would assume then, that most on this site would have problems with Billy Graham for instance because he preaches to "all" the lost and pleads for them to accept salvation in Christ Jesus. Problems I say, because his audience would certainly include the reprobate, i.e. other than favored elect. You surely consider evangelicals like Graham in a kind and respectful light although I would suspect that you might consider their preaching to be inefficient since so many of the hearers are not the elect unto salvation.
My problem isn't with preaching to the reprobate. What other method do we use to reach them? My beef with Billy is the message he preaches. It is a sandimanian pelagian heresy. We can't preach only to the elect because we do not know who they are infallibly.
Consider this verse:
1 Timothy 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
We know that this is NOT saying that all men will be saved but is not Paul telling Timothy that God wants all men to be saved? All my life I have been taught that the LORD would be very pleased if all men would seek His face; was this untruth?
Is God incapable of getting what He wants? No, because He is omnipotent. I think God would be happy if even one sinner turned to Him, but He also knows none will without His grace. Here is a page that covers the text in question,
1Tim 2:4.
2 Peter 3:9 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.
I would desire that Peter would have phrased the above to be: “not willing that any of the elect shall perish, but that all of the elect should come to repentance.” Then we could know of a certainty that God calls unto Himself only a pre-chosen, privileged elect.
Part of the problem is that we tend to interpret these passage as absolutes. ALL simply does not always ALL without exception. Actually, in normal usage it rarely does. Context is everything. The passage is concerning the elect. We know God calls people to Himself. Doesn't the OT show this?
IF God wanted all people saved, what holds Him back? Careful.
God’s sovereignty has not been compromised, He does the saving. But in my upbringing, we do the believing to appropriate this miracle on one’s soul. We add nothing to salvation beyond child-like simple, believing faith. None of our works would suffice, they are filthy rags, we possess no inherent righteousness. We start out totally depraved. Even the faith required to believe God is a gift from Him.
Then Gods regeneration is either unto a neutral state or toward salvation infallibly. However, you contradicted yourself several times.......let me show you.
God’s sovereignty has not been compromised, He does the saving. But in my upbringing, we do the believing to appropriate this miracle on one’s soul.
This is exactly a false atonement. It actually saved none, only making salvation an option dependant upon (
Enter work here) to appropriate it. Your next sentence contradicts that.......
We add nothing to salvation beyond child-like simple, believing faith.
Nothing
except.
None of our works would suffice, they are filthy rags, we possess no inherent righteousness.
Nothing except our (
enter free-will choice here).
You perhaps might say that it was God who woke up this desire to seek Him out and find Him because He does this for the elect.
Joh 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. (KJV)
Could not God in His sovereignty choose to give men free will, even to violate; not His sovereignty; but His will? And violation of His will He can and must punish. The creature has free will to choose, but he suffers the consequences of wrong decisions. His choice to do evil for a season bring about God’s chastening for the believer. During this moment before he repents according to 1 John 1:9, he is violating God’s will by sinning. But the word of God and the Holy Spirit convict him of his sin and he turns and repents. God receives him and the violation of God’s will ends for that particular sin because the man has been brought under the obedience of the gospel. There are conditional things that we must do, very simple acts of faith and then God responds; very much how it is between parents and their children.
Free-will is unscriptural. Any hypothetical concerning it starts with a false premise.
I contend that this is not manipulating God. He encourages us to ask, seek, knock and the door of blessing will be opened.
Saint Paul answered this.......
Rom 3:10-11 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. (KJV)
Has not God offered men salvation and as an act of His own sovereign will, chosen to make the efficacy of salvation dependent upon the choice to believe that He will do this upon the believing faith of the one who chose to receive this divine intervention?
No.
God bless,
william
