Posted on 06/08/2005 4:41:38 AM PDT by echoBoomer
Are you suggesting that God is in Heaven wringing his hands hoping we will be good little people and that everything will work out in the end?
God is in eternity. He knows the beginning and the end cause He is outside of time.
Now, answer my question. Or at least half of it. What is sin?
SD
Aren't you describing double predestination? God knows who will not accept the atoning death of Christ, He knows they will spend eternity in Hell, but yet he creates them anyway?
You missed the key point. God gives everyone a chance at salvation. So those who end up condemned are so because of their decision.
You don't believe God gives everyone a chance at salvation.
SD
It is not an invitation in the typical sense- the invitees are not free to turn the invitation down or accept it since, under your theology, their answer is pre-determined.
The elect are saved, period. Nothing can un-save them. The non-elect cannot be saved no matter what.
That is one of the heaviest criticisms of Calvinism- the notion of predestination throws all biblical morality and concepts of sin out the door.
Not according to Calvinism. The elect are saved and will live a Godly life, the non-elect are not saved, never have the spirit enter them and are destined to live an ungodly life.
*** You don't believe God gives everyone a chance at salvation. ***
So does God creat people knowing they won't choose Christ?
Obviously.
The point here I already highlighted for you. God gives all a chance. Those who fail do so because of their own choices, not because of God's decision.
And now, before we take the next step, yes God could have chosen to create a different type of reality. So there is some essence to the claim that God chose this reality and all that entails within it.
I admit that the way that our freedom and God's creation interact is beyond our capacity to understand. But it is fallacious to reduce God to His Sovereign Will and exclude the other facets of His Ineffable Mystery.
It is clear to me and most others that we face choices every day and we act with a freedom to do good or evil. That all of these free choices somehow end up advancing God's Plan is beyong my pay grade to comprehend. All I know is that to say that our choices make no differences or are actually illusionary is a harmful philosophy.
Just great. RW's one of the elect; you're one of the chosen. I feel so common.
LOL! No, no. I was just trying to warn you about the wiles of Lebanese women. Think of what one of my ancestors did to poor Samson. There's a reason why we ladies are always front and center in every Cedar Revolution protest.
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Yes, Pray that the Father would draw some of them by His Irresistible Grace to his one and only Son. Just as with folks like us, God has to do the work of regeneration and to bring them to faith in Christ. It would be nice if they would seek after God, but no one does (no not one). So you are very right to call for prayers. And pray for those that bring the message over there. That the message would go forth redoubled for every persecution.
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