Layman's Confession of Faith

Those who exercised faith would be the very Ones He elected out beforehand to receive Jesus!

 

Chosen by will of God, before they ever exercised any faith in Jesus!

 

How about Ephesians 2:8-10?

 

Even saving faith is a gift of God towards us, so we must receive that gift before we can believe!itself is the giftOTE]

 

Lost sinners have no inherit faith in ourselves!

 

The faith that we have is the very gift of God towards us, Ephesians 2:8-10!

 

You and I understand the terms used as personal faith in the Scriptures are gifted by God for His purpose. For example we are given the measure of faith for the ministry purpose God established for us to do.

Van, hasn't gotten to that understanding.

He correctly sees human belief as innate in all. He correctly understands that such is corrupted by the fall.

HOWEVER, he doesn't see the fall as so corrupting that humankind cannot under their own volition express belief "unto salvation." That is the human can get God's attention and God looking at the credibility level of the human belief grants salvation.

Here then is the violation of Scriptures.

1) Not comprehending that when the Scripture teach the unbelieving are "condemned already" (John 3) that includes every attribute, also.
2) Nothing already condemned is redeemed for it is already been judged by God as unredeemed. Condemnation is not a process, it is the pronouncement of judgement.
3) Not presenting the salvation is complete and completely of God.
4) Not giving God the credit and honor as the author of the belief in the redeemed.​

Therefore, no matter what correction of Van's misapplied Scriptures are made, he is incapable of reforming his view(s).

He actually believes that dust can pervert and prevent the authority of God in this matter of salvation in others, yet that same dust has the authority to attain salvation for itself.

Van's presentation seems most confused about how heaven is attained.

1) He has presented that the religious rulers could prevent entry into heaven, and yet has people of their own innate volition entering.

2) He has presented that human faith must be expressed and that is the catalyst for God's granting of salvation by "crediting our faith" and yet would such is not supposedly a human effort. ​

 

You err because we are not "chosen through our existing faith."

By not making dust completely condemned, you present some attribute as having ability to attain God's attention.

But God said that the unredeemed are already condemned, and that includes every attribute and ability.

Therefore, the faith spoken of in 2 Thessalonians 2:13 is not human generated conjuring, but that very gift presented and endowed by the choosing of God that person to a specific purpose.

 

God cannot and will not honor anything that we do in our sinful flesh before He saves us, its as filty rags to Him!

 

No, but again, how do dead in sin nature sinners be able to believe unless granted that by the Lord Himself?