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NASB | John 3:16 ¶ "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | John 3:16 ¶ "For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life. |
Subject: THE CROSS |
Bible Note: Greetings Joseph3! No problem my friend! You are welcome to respond at any time. My only concern is that I don't want to get another long debate started on this topic, since it has been discussed many times before. However, I will respond to your points. In general though, I think that you are forcing an interpretation upon these verses based upon theological assumptions that are not supported by the text themselves - i.e. 'all' can't mean 'all'; therefore, 'all' must mean 'some'. So, allow me to touch upon each example. a) 2 Cor. 5:19: You wrote: "God is bringing reconciliation to the world and this verse is speaking to us as believers to go out and preach reconciliation." However, the verse doesn't say that God is bringing 'reconcilation to the world'. This construction would make 'reconcilation' the object of the sentence. It could then be a thing which is simply brought and not mention anything at all about who the reconcilation is for. But, what does the verse actually say: "that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men?s sins against them...." Here, the verbal is 'reconciling' and the object is world. So, what God was doing, He did to the world. It is only a theological assumption which demands that 'world' here must mean believers or elect. Notice also that the 'reconcilation', while accomplished on God's part, still must be received by the world. Verse 20 implores people to 'be reconciled to God'. This is an imperative which must be acted upon. Further, how does Paul use the word 'world'? How about Rom. 5:12? Does 'world' there mean only the elect? b) John 3:16-17: I began reading when I was about 5 years old. Never in all the years I have been reading would I have ever read 'to save the world' and take it to mean 'to save some of the world'! :-) Again, my friend, this is a reading mandated by a theological assumption, not the text. I have done a lengthy study on the meanings of the word 'world' before. If you would like to read it, simply search for 'Morant61' and 'world'. c) John 6:44 and 12:32: This one is actually quite simple. The subject of 6:44 is 'no one'. The verse says that 'no one' is able to come unles the Father draws him. The verse does not say that all who are drawn will come. It only says that all who come must be drawn. This is where John 12:32 fits in - no one could come if not for the fact that Christ draws all to Him. Now, back to 6:44! Those who come, not those who are drawn, will be raised. So, there is no conflict between these two verses and no need to assume that 'all men' in 12:32 must really only mean 'some men'. d) John 6:33 and 51: Nothing said here conflicts with my view at all. The atonement is an objective reality on the part of God which must be accepted or received on our part. So, yes, life is offered to all, but only those who eat of this bread will live. e) Titus 2:11: If this is what this verse means, then you do believe that every individual has heard, right? f) 1 John 4:14 - Same problem as earlier, this verse does not say 'only Savior in this world'. It says, 'the Savior of the world'. I'll finish with your second part my friend! Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |