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NASB | Romans 1:16 ¶ For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Romans 1:16 ¶ I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation [from His wrath and punishment] to everyone who believes [in Christ as Savior], to the Jew first and also to the Greek. |
Subject: Clarification from John Reformed...? |
Bible Note: Hello again Brent, I have a little time before church and hope to be able to answer at least one of your points bfore I must leave. You wrote: "I certainly believe that all initiation and conviction comes from the Spirit and not from unregenerate man. However, I believe this is not forced upon us irresistably -- by God's design not by any inability on God's part. I believe that conviction and even certain levels of enlightenment from the Spirit come prior to faith, but that Spiritual-spiritual regeneration comes upon belief." 1) I am in agreement with you on your first point. "all initiation and conviction comes from the Spirit...). 2) I also agree with your 2nd point: "I believe this is not forced upon us irresistably". Permit me to explain. Calvinists do NOT believe that God violates the will of any man. What we do believe is: A spiritually dead person can no more give himself spiritual life that a physically dead person can give himself physical live. That requires a supernatural act on the part of God. We get into the family of God in precisely the same way that we get into our human family, by being born into it. By that supernatural act God Himself, through His Holy Spirit, sovereignly takes us out of the kingdom of Satan and places us in His spiritual kingdom by a spiritual rebirth. (Lorraine Boettner)." "But manifestly in regeneration, in the initial revolution of disposition, the soul does not act, but is a thing acted on. In this first point there can be no cooperation of the man's will with the divine power. The agency is wholly Gods, and not man's, even in part. The vital change must be affected by immediate direct divine power. God's touch here may be mysterious; but it must be real, for it is proved by the seen results. The work must be sovereign and supernatural. Sovereign in this sense, that there is no will concerned in its effectuation except God's, because the sinner's will goes against it as invariably, as freely, until it is renewed; supernatural, because there is nothing at all in sinful human nature to begin it, man's whole natural disposition being to prefer and remain in a godless state." (R.L. Dabney) "God from all eternity did by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass: yet so as thereby neither is God the author of sin, nor is violence offered to the will of the creatures," (The Westminster Confession of Faith) I would suggest you ponder the implications of Acts 4:27,28 "For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur." The wicked freely crucified our Lord but in doing so they still fulfilled God's eternal purpose! Joseph proclaimed to his brothers Gen 50:20 "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive." God's will is not frustrated. He has an eternal plan and that plan has been perfectly executed and all His good pleasure will come to pass. To hold aview of God trying to save but failing to save those He desires to save is, to me, a low estimation of our omnipotent God. Time to go. God Bless, John |