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NASB | Romans 11:22 Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God's kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Romans 11:22 Then appreciate the gracious kindness and the severity of God: to those who fell [into spiritual ruin], severity, but to you, God's gracious kindness--if you continue in His kindness [by faith and obedience to Him]; otherwise you too will be cut off. |
Subject: cut off |
Bible Note: Brother Curt: Who does God Choose? Why did he Choose me, you, other? Jesus said “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5:32) Jesus said “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37) Who did Jesus die for? Paul writes “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” (1 Timothy 1:15) John writes “And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins ofthe whole world”.( 1 John 2:2) What is God’s will for all people? Paul writes about God “Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.”( 1 Tim: 2:4) Why then are all not saved? In fact as you have pointed “many are called, but few are chosen” Paul writes to the Romans in chp. 3 “Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ, unto all and upon all them that believe” V.22 There are two groups in this verse: the righteousness of God is offered to all. Yet it is only upon all them that believe. As you have pointed out from Romans 3:11 “There is none that seeketh after God” and in the following verses 12-19 God shows us the sinfulness of our human heart. There is no difference,we are all the same, there is nothing in us that would attract God to us. At the end of this summary God concludes: “Therefore by the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified in his sight” Rom. 3:20 How then does one get saved if we are so hopelessly lost and dead in sin? We must remember that the good shepherd will always go after the sheep which is lost and bring him to safety in the fold. John 10 Jesus taught his disciples of the coming of the Holy Spirit into the world after his death and “when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. (John 14:7) When God looked on the human race in Noah’s day he said “My Spirit shall not always strive with man” Gen. 6:3 God by his spirit speaks to lost sinners in this world through those who know Christ, through his word and through the circumstances in life. He speaks to us of our sin through our conscience, he speaks concerning the righteousness of God through Christ and he speaks of judgment to come. Humans are not robots, like Adam of old they are capable of hearing the voice of God by his Spirit. I do not believe that faith is a work. God calls lost sinners to himself by his spirit. When we here his call we must respond. It is true that he called us often before we knew that it was he that was speaking. Nevertheless, when God call us he will bring us to a point in which he will open our understanding regarding the work of Christ. However, if we refuse to accept our lost sinful condition and rest upon Christ for salvation we will not be saved. There are many examples in scripture of people who were spoken to time and time again, but there came a point when it was too late. Faith is a conviction within which gives us assurance that Christ is sufficient for our salvation. It is a truth that is revealed to us by the Spirit of God, it is not a true which we can conjure up on our own. If we were to look at the many people who came to Christ when he walked on this earth we find that he usually waited for a response before he blessed them. Think of the cripple man who was carried to the roof by his friends because of the crowds surrounding the savior. They tore up the tiles and let the man down at Jesus feet. The Bible says “When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.” (Mark 2:5) It seems to me that our repentance is acknowledging that God is right about our sin and to turn to him in all our need, at this point by his spirit he will reveal Christ to us. We do nothing except rest in him. You were correct, A lot to ponder! In Christ Robert |