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Bro. Jim
Here is a reply to your letter that I haven't sent yet.
My Answer to your Question on the Holy Spirit inviting
Revelation 22:17 -- This passage speaks of the Holy Spirit inviting. It says, "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." The Holy Spirit is inviting those who do not have yet the water of life to take it freely. The Holy Spirit invites those burdened with sin and guilt to trust Jesus. Jesus Himself is making the invitation in Matt.11: 28-29. One would say, "So the Spirit just invites the burdened and not all men". Yes because the Spirit won't invite them to come if they have not felt the guilt and repented yet. So before the Spirit would invite any to come, he will reprove him first of sin and unbelief. (Jn16: 8) The Spirit reproves all men, not just some men (Jn.16: 8). All men do not believe, that's why the Spirit reproves all men because all are sinners and unbelieving. The Spirit reproves men through the gospel. There are men who resist the reproofs of the Spirit by pride and they do not want to listen to the Gospel, and others do hear but do not humbly believe. (Prov.29: 1, Acts 7:51). But those who hear the gospel humbly are brought into understanding and they realize their sins, repent, and believe in Jesus (Ps.33: 18; 34:2; 86:5; Rom.10: 17). He gives more grace to those who respond humbly under his grace (James 4:6; Ps.101: 6; Deut.5: 10). God makes an invitation to all to listen to His reproofs and the reproofs of the Holy Spirit (Prov.1: 23-33). God makes an invitation to all men to attend to hear His words (Matt.22: 14). Jesus made invitations as well as the Spirit (Jn.7: 37; Heb.3: 7-15; Isaiah 55:1-3; Jer.13: 15-17).
My Answer to your Question on Freewill
By Freewill, I mean the ability to make a choice between wrong and wrong,
right and wrong, and right and right, obedience or disobedience, and receiving
or rejecting, etc. The Calvinist will say, "but the sinners freewill is
captive and enslaved by the devil?" Yes, the sinner is free to choose between
wrong and wrong, disobedience and disobedience. Under God's grace and divine
influence, the sinner has the freedom to choose between right and wrong,
obedience or disobedience, receiving Christ or rejecting. Can God influence
the unregenerated sinner to believe? The Calvinist's answer is no! He must
first be regenerated before God can influence him to believe as taught
by Calvinism. If the devil can at times influence the regenerated to sin,
why can't God influence the unregenerated to believe? Yes He can, but He
chooses to bestow saving grace only to those who humble under His common
and initial grace, and those who respond humbly, God bestows greater grace
and aids them by His Spirit to repent and trust Christ. (Jam.4: 6; Eph.1:
19; Ps.33: 18; I Sam.2: 30; Prov.21: 29; Isa.57: 15 Ps.147: 11; Ps.101:
4). Does God want all men to be humble? Why are not all men humble? Does
God want some men to be proud? Does God want some men to reject and blaspheme
Christ? (Mal.1: 10; 2:16; Psa.35: 27; Mal.2: 17). If God wants all men
to be humble and to repent, and not all men humble and repent, it is because
of God has given the sinners freewill under His grace. (Jer.13: 15; Deut.30:
19; Prov.21: 29).
My Explanation of John 6:37 and 17:2
John 6:37 is clear present tense. "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me....". The word "giveth" in the old English means "gives" not "gave". . It does not say "The Father gave them to the Son before the foundation of the world". John 17:2 is a fact that Christ's disciples at that particular time when he prayed for them were already "in Him". The Bible says that those in Christ are "new creatures" (II Cor.5: 17). People before regeneration is without God, alien and apart from Christ (I Peter 2:10; Eph.2: 2-3; 12-13). In John ch.17, Jesus prayed for three items: First he prayed for His present disciples and to no one else (Jn.17: 9). Second, he prayed for those who will become believers or future believers (v.20), then lastly, he prayed for the world (v.21) "...that the world may believe that thou has sent me". The question here is, does God want all men to believe in Christ or God want some men to reject Christ? John 17:21 tells us that Christ prayer and desire is for the world to believe and that means all men in the world. Paul told the believers to pray for all men because God wants all men to know the truth and be saved. (I Tim.2: 1-6).
Some Questions on John 17:2
1. Does God exercise power over all mankind?
2. How does God use His power over non-elect? Does he ever reprove
them of sin? Does He offer salvation to them? Does he want them to repent?
Or He never minds them at all?
3. Since God has power over all men, why won't He use His power to
regenerate all men and cause all men to believe in Jesus? Does He not want
all men to repent and believe?
4. Does God just leave the non-elect in their depraved nature, not
minding nor taking part in the events of their lives?
1. Does God ever influence the non-elect to live right or never mind
them at all?
2. Has God the ability to save all men or just a limited few?
3. Since the Father has given Christ authority over all mankind, does
Christ have the ability to give eternal life to all?
4. Is the authority of Jesus over all is somewhat different for elect
from the non-elect in the sense that He has the ability to give eternal
life to the elect only and has no ability to give eternal life to the non-elect?
5. Does the authority of Jesus over all mankind includes the ability
to give eternal life?
6. Does God ever use His power and authority to cause some people to
believe in Christ?
7. If God does use His authority to cause some people to believe in
Christ, why won't he use His authority to cause all who are under His authority
to believe in Christ?
8. Does God intend the Gospel to all men or just some men?
9. Since God has authority over all flesh, does He ever care for others
who are under His authority or does not mind them at all? Does He get angry
at their sinning or does not mind them at all?
10. If God never cares if they repent or not, why would He get angry
for their rejection of the gospel?
11. Are the elect in the hand of Christ before regeneration?
God bless,
Bro. Edwin