A simple fact

If I understand what you are saying, salvation can either be accepted or rejected? I think the truth is that salvation exists apart from our acceptance or rejection (Arminianism) and takes place by God's grace through the New Birth which enables faith and repentance.

 

What enables faith is the preaching of the gospel:

Rom 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Salvation does not exist apart from the gospel for the gospel is the power to salvation:

Rom 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.

 

All are sinners. But those who trust in Jesus alone, not in their wills, or in their acceptance of Jesus, or other good works, God saves. People believe because God saved them. He doesn't save the self-righteous who think they save themselves by thinking the right things.

 

God commands all people, everywhere, to repent.

All are guilty sinners, condemned already.

 

“But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14) (KJV 1900)

That is, you must be saved (Born Again) before the gospel makes sense to you.

Plus, faith is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. You must have the Holy Spirit before faith (true faith) can exist. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,” (Galatians 5:22) (KJV 1900)

Did Paul give the Jailer a means whereby he could save himself? Or did he assure him that believing in Jesus meant he was saved?

 

Jesus says "whoever believes has eternal life". Is this a law you must decide to keep in order to initiate your salvation? Or is it a characteristic of those whom God saves?

 

Your post displays an impressive lack of understanding.

First, what does scripture say?

In a message delivered in front of large crowd of unbelievers the Apostle Paul said:

Acts 17:30-31 30 "Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, 31 because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

Paul did not say that all people everywhere should repent just for the sake of it. He said that because of the proof of the resurrection, God is going to judge the world and because of that reason all people everywhere should repent. So, there is the imperative – the command. Can all men repent (and by inference believe)? Will all men repent and believe? Again, what does scripture say?

Ephesians 1:4 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.

God the Father chose the Elect for salvation from eternity past. He did not choose them based on any merit they possessed. No one who comes to faith in Jesus Christ is worthy of that faith. Salvation – all of it – is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:9).

If only the Elect will come to faith in Christ, why preach the gospel? Once again, to scripture:

1 Corinthians 1:21 21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

God has ordained the means of salvation (the preaching of the gospel) as the method of calling His elect. Why? I know this is getting redundant but back to scripture we go:

1 Corinthians 1:22-25 22 For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; 23 but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, 24 but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

The preaching of the gospel is as much a proclamation of judgment to those who reject Christ as it is a message of hope to the Elect.

Lastly, none of us possess perfect knowledge. We do not possess spiritual 3-D vision whereby we can peer into a person and determine whether they are elect. So, we proclaim the gospel to all and do not concern ourselves with whether a person is elect. The hidden things belong to God and He has not chosen to reveal the identity of the Elect to anyone but the Son. So, we can (and should) proclaim with boldness, “Believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved!”

 

Interesting that you would talk about handling disagreement in another thread and in this thread make such an inflammatory post which is only designed to belittle someone's view. I would say this is an example of taking one's self way too seriously. What would instigate such unnecessary emotion?

 

If you turn faith into a condition you must meet, you turn the gospel into Law. In fact, it is an attempt to keep the first commandment.

 

The typical initial response by Calvinists, insult with the accusation of ignorance.

 

Yep

 

No you don't. The law is the law and nothing can be added to it. Faith (belief) is necessary because you cannot have a relationship with someone you don't believe in. You cannot sit in a chair if you do not believe it will support you sitting in it. Where does faith come from?

Rom 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.