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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: Which proposition is scriptural? |
Bible Note: Dear Pastor Glenn, There is an important arguement against the doctrine which says that, God wills that none should perish, but because of stubborn refusal to embrace Christ, many do perish. This arguement is that if man can resist and overcome all of God's efforts to persuade him to surrender to the love of Christ, then the willof God is shown to be weaker then that of man. Pastor you stated "Think whatever else you will about election, but you must see that this scripture very clearly shows God's will that "all" should turn from there sins and be saved:" Of course, the idea that the creature's will is able to resist and defeat His creator is not found in the Bible, but in "Frankenstien"! The passages from Ezekial which you have provided speak to God's decreetive will (That which He has commanded). This is the OT law which God ordained tobe a school-teacher. It was never a way to salvation that any fallen man was capable of obeying. It was meant to point man to the cross of Christ and salvation by grace alone through faith. The Bible is clear when it says in Isa 46:9,10 " Is 46:9,10 "Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, 'My purpose will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure". Question: If it was God's good pleasure to save all men, and yet some perish, what are we to make of this passage from Isaiah? I believe the "free-willer" would respond that it was also God's good pleasure to permit man the freedom to resist God's will. But that does not solve anything, it just nuetralizes Isa 46:10 9,10. The problem with this is that nowhere in the Bible is free-will mentioned as an attribute of fallen man. The conflict of opinion ( as I see it) that exists between us arises from what does "will" mean when the Bible says God wills or does not "will" something. "Affirming the will of God to save all, while also affirming the unconditional election of some, implies that there are at least "two wills" in God, or two ways of willing. It implies that God decrees one state of affairs while also willing and teaching that a different state of affairs should come to pass. This distinction in the way God wills has been expressed in various ways throughout the centuries. It is not a new contrivance. For example, theologians have spoken of sovereign will and moral will, efficient will and permissive will, secret will and revealed will, will of decree and will of command, decretive will and preceptive will, voluntas signi (will of sign) and voluntas beneplaciti (will of good pleasure), etc...." ...To avoid all misconceptions it should be made clear at the outset that the fact that God wishes or wills that all people should be saved does not necessarily imply that all will respond to the gospel and be saved. We must certainly distinguish between what God would like to see happen and what he actually does will to happen, and both of these things can be spoken of as God's will. The question at issue is not whether all will be saved but whether God has made provision in Christ for the salvation of all, provided that they believe, and without limiting the potential scope of the death of Christ merely to those whom God knows will believe." (John Piper) If you are interested in reading Piper's article, "Are There Two Wills in God", it is at http://www.desiringgod.org/library/topics/doctrines_grace/2wills.html Thanks again brother, John |