How Free Will Turns the Gospel into Law and Grace into Works.

No the gospel is the power of God providing salvation for the unbelievers, to the Jew first and also to the Gentile.

You have read Romans 1:16, no?

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

[I predict 1689Dave will ignore this scripture and pose another, unrelated question.]

 

John 20

30Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

He could have wrote this is for folks who believe. He did not. He plainly tells you so people will believe and believing you may have life.

Notice its not the exact backwards. Those who have life in his name, will believe and this is a book for you guys.

 

Adam was not the first sinner, He sinned as all do, making our own choices instead of relying on God's choices for us. You try to put yourself as God.

 

Does the Bible say directly that he was saved at that time?

 

Er, Adam was not the firs sinner?

 

I've heard this debate for years. I've concluded it comes down to how you view faith. If faith is meritorious, yes, freewill is a problem. If faith is not meritorious, then really, there's no problem at all. Believers are no more deserving of heaven than non-believers. It is God who reckons faith as righteousness, of his own free will, with no obligation. We can say, we believed, but really, is that something worth boasting about? Was God obligated to reckon our faith? Does faith earn heaven, or does God have to reckon our faith? If the latter, then salvation is 100% of God, even if we believed of our own free will.

 

It's a bigger "rowboat" than you think.

Not if you understand what "election" is.
People can be saved, and not yet believe.

Exactly.
As was Lydia ( Acts of the Apostles 16:14 ).
Prior to hearing the word of God, He opened her heart, so that she would listened to the words that Paul spoke.

Preachers preach, teachers teach and every born again believer has their gifts ( Ephesians 4:11-16 ).

Preaching the Gospel does not guarantee that someone believes, every time it is preached.
God has ordained that His elect come to Him by preaching ( 1 Corinthians 1:21 ).

You got it.

 

"Directly"?
No.
Can it be proven Scripturally?

Yes ( Acts of the Apostles 13:48, Romans 8:28-30, Ephesians 1:4-14, Ephesians 2:1-10, 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 ).
Every one that truly believes was gifted with it ( Philippians 1:29 ), was ordained to eternal life and was chosen to salvation.

Cornelius believed because he was one of Christ's sheep ( John 10:26 ), was "of God" and heard His words ( John 8:47 ), was given to Christ by His Father ( John 6:65, John 17:2 ), and because of His own will Cornelius was begotten with the word of truth ( James 1:18 ).
Not by Cornelius' will.

Only those that were foreknown, were predestinated conformed to the image of His Son, were "called", were justified and were glorified.

Only the foreknown are "called", and only the "called" have "ears to hear" that "calling".
Because they have "ears to hear" ( Matthew 11:15 ).

Cornelius was saved from before the foundation of the world.
His experience of being born again, happened in real-time.

 

no , First sinner in a physical body, Satan and the others sinned long ago, Sin is spiritual

 

Rom 10:13

For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved
Rom 10:14

How then shall they call on him in whom they have notbelieved? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

 

" Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." ( Matthew 7:21-23 ).

"Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart." ( 2 Timothy 2:22 ).

" Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and [of] a good conscience, and [of] faith unfeigned:" ( 1 Timothy 1:5 ).

" The LORD [is] nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth." ( Psalms 145:18 ).

" The LORD [is] far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous." ( Proverbs 15:29 ).


Not every one that prays to Him, gets heard.
He only hears the prayers of them He has saved for Himself.

"Praying a prayer", or "calling upon the Lord" if one is not saved, will not gain any favor with God ( Romans 9:15-16 ).
Religious people do it all the time.

Did you truly believe?
Then He will hear your prayers when you call upon Him...in truth, out of a pure heart ( that He has begotten in you into with the word of truth ( James 1:18 ) ), and because He has made you righteous by the blood of His Son.

 

No the plan of salvation, the intent, was set into motion. Election is corporate. So no you have no biblical evidence. It is only assumed based on your presupposition.

 

Oh, I see. Well, I'll grant that Satan sinned first, though it was not long before. Satan sinned in the Garden, just as Adam did. Gen. 3, Ezek. 28. He was cursed right along with Adam and the earth.

 

That is not what those verses say, and it is not the context of those verses . The context of those verse is Israel and Israel alone. That remains true all the way through chapter 11. This is made clear in 9:3 and continues to be the case. There is no need to call upon the Lord, for salvation, if one is already saved. Romans 10:9-17 is all about becoming saved not being saved.

 

Satan sinned in Heaven and was expelled long before the Garden