1 Timothy 2:3-4 "This is good and pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."
John 15:16 "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit"
Great theologians have argued over these verses for centuries. So I will not attempt to settle the Calvinism vs Armenian debate today.
But I will tell you that both verses are "God breathed" and complete truth. The fact that our intellect cannot settle their co-existence is a reflection of our inability not their veracity.
Here is the clear truth that comes from these two passages of scripture.
If you are saved, it is not because you are smarter or better than those who are lost. It is not because your sin was less offensive to God than others. It is because God chose to rescued an arrogant sinner who didn't even know he was lost until he was convicted by the Holy Spirit. And because of God's great mercy He paid an unspeakable price, to redeemed you from your sin.
If you are not saved, it is not because God doesn't love you, or your sin is worse than others. It's not because Jesus didn't die for you. It is not because it is not God's will for you to be saved ... It is simply because you have said that you do not need a Savior, and rejected the free gift of God.
So the bottom line is this: if you are saved, no one deserves credit but God, and if you are lost no one is to blame but you...and most importantly if you're reading this and lost, all of Heaven is hoping you will change that.
“We cross a line when we are more focused on mastering theology than on being mastered by Christ.”
- Greg Dutcher
No comments:
Post a Comment