Featured The Book of Ephesians

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Amen Van, the purpose of God in applying his most often used mathematical equation, division, in the beginning of this age after the flood, is for this stated purpose. Anyone who denies it is not victimized by a lack of understanding.

Ac 17:24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;
25 Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;
26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:

The other uses of this English word, haply.
1Sa 14:30 How much more, if haply the people had eaten freely to day of the spoil of their enemies which they found? for had there not been now a much greater slaughter among the Philistines?
Mr 11:13 And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet.
Lu 14:29 Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him,
Ac 5:39 But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.
2Co 9:4 Lest haply if they of Macedonia come with me, and find you unprepared, we (that we say not, ye) should be ashamed in this same confident boasting.

 

I would give my views but the OP is about to close but I will say very few agree with Van we just let him preach to himself... He's good at that... Now you know... Brother Glen

2 Corinthians 4: 5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.

 

Here we have the claim very view blank agree with quoted scripture, they just ignore it. Van does not preach himself, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and he strives to be His servant.

God's inspired word clearly teaches some of the lost sometimes seek God and His promises.
Luke 13:24 CSB
“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because I tell you, many will try to enter and won’t be able."

Luke 18:18 CSB
A ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? ”

Both in the OT and in the NT, God's inspired word teaches some of the lost, some of the time seek God and His promises.

 

In defense of Van I would make the argument that it would have been better for you Calvinists if the epistle to the Ephesians would have contained only the first three verses in chapter 1. My reasoning is that you would have only your favorite three verses to not believe because the contextual explanation would not be present rather than 6 whole chapters that makes a case for this age. It is better to be ignorant because you do not have the truth than to have the truth and to not believe it, or wrest into saying something it does not say, or, simply ignoring it. That is my opinion.

 

I don't understand what you are trying to say. Are you saying that the doctrines of grace via election and adoption are not taught throughout Ephesians and the entire Bible, but are only extrapolated from the first three verses of Ephesians 1?

Sir, you are not making any sense.

 

yes, I am saying the doctrine of the grace of God is taught in Ephesians but not a systematic doctrine called the doctrines of grace. The gentiles, to whom the epistle is addressed, is the recipients of God’s gift of salvation after being made partakers with the people of God, Israel, who were first to receive it in the person of the Holy Spirit permanently indwelling their bodies and becoming one with them while at the same time placing them into his body that he is forming by Jews and gentiles in this age. The gentiles did not have a previous promise of salvation as did the Jews and so God making his salvation a gift by grace to us is clearly the message of this letter and is stated succinctly through the letter but especially in chapter 2:11 through 14.

 

Where, in the Old Testament, are Jewish people promised salvation?

Did the Jews get saved by their works? If so, then the Pharisees were easily the most saved of all Jews in keeping the law.

Sir, I do not think you understand the meta narrative of the Bible very well.

 

The doctrines of grace (TULI) of the Tulip are not taught throughout Ephesians and the entire Bible, but are extrapolated from mistaken or ambiguous translations of verses taken out of context.

 

Exactly. There's no doubt I'm a descendent of Japheth. But take note from Noah's prophecy:

27 God enlarge Japheth, And let him dwell in the tents of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant. Gen 9

Brought to be understood in the NT:

29 but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God. Ro2

3 for we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God, and glory in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh: Phil 3

'In the spirit, not in the letter', it seems that's something you dispies are incapable of grasping.

10 Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass that, in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God. Hosea 1

 

Do you teach that a man who walks into a chicken house becomes a chicken? Or. the man who enters a garage becomes a car? The prophecy says Japheth will dwell in the tents of Shem, it does not say he will become a Shemite. You added that part.. That is not even the intention of the prophesy. Good grief. A Jew is one of the two tribe nation of Judah, Benjamine and Judah, as opposed to the 10 tribe nation of Israel. Judah was comprised of two of the 12 tribes of Israel. The first mention of the ethnic name Jew is in Esther. Her uncle was Mordecai, who was from the tribe of Benjamin, not Judah, and he, a Benjamite, was the first person to be called a Jew. The 10 tribes designated "Israel" had long since lost their national identity and home land.

Es 2:5 Now in Shushan the palace there was a certain Jew, whose name was Mordecai, the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjamite;

Ro 11:1 I say then, Hath God cast away his people (he is speaking of the ethnic people of God, Israel)? God forbid (this means NO). For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew.

Paul was saved in 37/38 AD. He wrote Romans in 58 AD. This means he had been saved for 20 years already when he wrote that he was still a Jew. All the history of the NT from Acts 1 to Acts 18 had passed when he wrote the epistle to the Romans from Corinth. The gentiles who began to be saved in Acts 10 in the year 40 AD and who now had an 18 year history of being saved were still gentiles. In this same Romans epistle and the same chapter he addressed the Roman gentile Christians in verse 13. He said this;

Ro 11:13 For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:

He did not think they had become Jews at their conversion.
National Jews and Israelites had failed to believe in Jesus as their King and savior, and were cast off nationally and God dealt with saving them individually, meanwhile introducing a spiritual kingdom with a heavenly inheritance, rather than a physical one as promised in their OT history, into which they would become citizens by the one at a time new birth through faith in the death burial and resurrection of their Messiah Lord. The gentiles were accepted later and were invited in by grace through faith to fill this house. This did not negate the Abrahamic promises to this nation/family whose promises were physical and earthly but required that every one of them be born again and not just a remnant before the kingdom could or would be inaugurated.

I am not guessing about this because it is a firm pronouncement of scripture for those who believe.

Ro 11:25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.

Still speaking to gentiles, he continues;

26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.
28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes.
29 For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

The operative word concerning Israel is "all" must be saved for a national kingdom because Jesus will not rule over rebels but those who are born again only. This remnant of Israel along with gentile believers are the heavenly people of God that is his church, his body, his bride, who will dwell with him in Heaven and rule and reign over the earth with him.

The scriptures do make sense.