Provisionalism vs Calvinism

The points all function together. You cannot take one or two points away and still associate yourself with Calvin's exegesis of scripture.

 

There is no good answer to your question as God does not tell us the "why" in his plan. God only tells us some of the "for this purpose."
For what purpose did God ordain the entrance of rebellion into His creation? I don't know. What I know is that God had His promised one already ordained as He promises Adam and Eve that a Redeemer would come.

 

I have the same opinion about "Traditionalists", as well as "Wesleyans" and many others...although I truly hope that, through careful study, they will come to fully understand His word and its many truths contained in it.

No, the "honest choice" is what got us all into trouble.
That honest choice was like candy...and we fell in love with it.

Read Romans 1 carefully.
It's not pretty.

I agree.

But God told them what would happen if they ate of it.
Then when they did, they knew that they had done wrong.

Now here's where I think it gets real interesting...why didn't they both fall on their faces and beg God's forgiveness, instead of "playing the blame game"?

What does R.C. Sproul have to do with Scripture?

Where's that at, in God's word?

Yes, He does...no one ( Romans 3:10-18, Psalms 10:4 ).

Man's honest choice was already made, and is being made day after day.
We hate God and love sin ( John 3:19-20 )...honestly.

Without God to change the heart, there would be no choice other than to honestly reject Him and go the opposite direction.

 

I don't think it was about honest choice. God always chooses in scripture.
God chose mercy with Adam and Eve. He chose Abel's sacrifice. He chose Noah and Noah's family. He chose Abram. He chose Isaac, not Ishmael. He chose Jacob, not Esau. He chose Joseph. He chose Moses. He chose Joshua. He chose each Judge. He chose David. He chose the Prophets. He chose to enter earth as a man. He chose Apostles. He chose. It is one of the grand themes of God's revelation to man. God the Creator chooses what He is doing, like a brilliant artist. Nothing is haphazard. Nothing is out of place.

 

Really? Flowers is not scripture. You can at least bookmark the pertinent sections like people do with scripture.

 

OldArmy,

You took the time to post, that told me you are sincere. We are both studying and learning.
I was not so much refuting, but probing a bit for clarification.

 

again...every believer is really a Calvinist, but it takes time for some of the pieces to fall in place.

 

Deuteronomy 30:15-20 is a covenant promise to Israel. It is in keeping with the blessing and cursing of the Law found two chapters earlier in Deuteronomy 28. Moses' charge to the nation of Israel was ultimately fulfilled when the kingdom split and both factions were eventually conquered. There is a general principle we can apply from living a life of obedience or disobedience, but the conditions specified in Moses' charge were to the covenant nation of Israel, which no longer exists.

 

I did not skip over it. "It" is part of obedience to the Law. The promise to the covenant nation of Israel is that if obey you are blessed and if you not you are cursed.

 

Seems to me since the Jews could not keep the Law yet they were still blessed and cursed. In fact more than any other people on earth they are cursed yet blessed. Doesn't make any sense does it?
MB

 

Perhaps the 7 points of Provisionalism?

 

the "choose life" part.

 

It doesn't have to "make sense" to us.
But the reason they were blessed is because God chose them, as a nation:

" For thou [art] an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that [are] upon the face of the earth.
7 The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye [were] the fewest of all people:
8 but because the Lord loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the Lord brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. " ( Deuteronomy 7:6-8 ).

God says it and we as believers...believe it.
Shouldn't we?
From my experience, it then begins to make sense over time as the Lord transforms our thinking through His word.

In addition, the Law has a purpose...

" Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster [to bring us] unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith." ( Galatians 3:24 ).

"Wherefore then [serveth] the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and [it was] ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
20 Now a mediator is not a [mediator] of one, but God is one.
21 [Is] the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.
22 But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe." ( Galatians 3:19-22 ).

The Law served various purposes.
But for the believer in Christ Jesus, it has mainly one...

To condemn us and drive us to Christ as our only hope of reconciliation with God.