Featured If you are not a “Calvinist”….

I didn’t say all of it was limited to His disciples. I showed you there are three parts. He prays to the Father about their relationship v. 1-5

He prays about the disciples v.6-19

He prays about those who will believe as a result of their witness v. 20-26


It’s within that section that He prays for the disciples that He mentions those the Father gave Him.

We are not included in that anymore than we are in John 6.

 

I believe the Lord gives us a space to repent and believe just as he did Jezebel.
Revelation 2:20-21 KJVS
[20] Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. [21] And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not.

The Lord could be drawing both of you and you move to him and the other doesn’t. The Holy Ghost speaks to our hearts when we hear the preached Gospel. God also may not be speaking or drawing the one beside the other. Many times I heard his voice but wouldn’t turn to him with all my heart. The evening I was born again, I was singing with the church beside the piano and the Hoky Spirit began to draw me. I said to myself, or the enemy was telling me that it wasn’t time yet the preacher hadn’t preached yet and it wasn’t altar time. But I had heard the gospel before several times. I felt the drawing power get lighter and lighter, then a fear came over me that I may never get that call again. So, I put down the song book and made a few steps to the altar and gave it all to Jesus. In an instant, I felt the burden of sin lifted from me. Other times I had prayed and even told I was saved, but I had never truly given myself to him and the Holy Spirit let me know it that evening. God deals with us in his time. He gets the glory when we overcome self and Satan and obey Him.

John 6:44 KJVS
[44] No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

Revelation 3:20 KJVS
[20] Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

Revelation 22:17 KJVS
[17] 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.

 

Really? Let's test that claim.

The difference between me and "the other guy" is that, of my own free will, I believed the gospel, whereas the other, of his own free will, did not.

Is the difference between me and him a work?

 

My understanding of who are the sheep are those who will ultimately believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. So the being sheep or goats, tares or wheat are the end condtion of being saved or lost. Tares do not become wheat, goats do not become sheep. That is how I understand the use of those terms. Those terms are in God's point of view. Prior to a person being saved, we have no way of discerning what they are.

 

Your "no" and your "I believe human beings have a human will enslaved to sin and therefore not free." are contradictory, because, to solve the contradiction, you must proceed to disannul my free will faith. The only way to do that is to categorize free will faith as a work (since we're not saved by works).

Sure it answered the question. I was saved because I believed the gospel. The other was not because he did not believe the gospel.

 

What makes you different that you were one of the Calvinistically elect?
Why did God choose you and not another?
If anything smacks of elitism, it's that doctrine.

 

Good point.

 

God elected him to get saved by the Cross of Christ, and as such, the Holy Spirit gave him "ears to hear"

 

Are those who are not elected able to hear the voice of Jesus then calling out to them?