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I (and Martin) have answered this so many times. Yes, God's election took place before the foundation of the world. Calvinists believe that. And yes, the means by which sinners are saved is by grace through faith, i.e. by belief on the Lord Jesus Christ. Calvinists believe that too. So I was saved when by God's grace I believed 0n the Lord Jesus Christ, which was in 1968, a long time after the foundation of the world. Faith is not irrelevant.
That's assuming that many SBC churches are not reformed.
I am a Calvinist. I will agree with you that many Calvinists want to play word games. If God predestined me to salvation, wrote my name in The Book before the foundations of creation, then there is no possibility that I could ever not end up in His presence for eternity. Was I technically saved before the moment we call "salvation"? No, but there was never a time I could have died lost. It's pretty much a meaningless word game.
1689 London Baptist Confession 3:1.
Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21: 'And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.'
I think the biggest disagreement here is the basis on which one is foreknown, predestined, has their name written in the Book of Life.
You know it but you don't understand it. Your understanding is so appallingly earthbound that you seem incapable of accepting what God says in His word.
Very simply, it is what God says. First He says that He, from the beginning, chose us for salvation through belief in the truth, and at the same time He says that whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Why can you not simply believe what He tells you, even if you can't understand it? '"For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts."'
My theology says nothing of the sort, as you know very well because I have told you repeatedly. When are you going to stop telling me what I believe?
And as I have said before (many times), my theology does nothing of the sort.
What I just wrote above, though I know it won't do any good. You will keep trotting out the same old nonsense because you don't know what you're talking about.'Just as He [God] chose us [Christians] in Him [Christ] before the foundation of the world.' Yes, we are foreknown, predestined, elect etc. and all of it is 'in Christ' and all of it is before the foundation of the world. And yes, whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, but that will not happen unless God opens their hearts to do so. Why? Because God prevents them? No! Because they will not come, as is evidenced in all the texts I keep on giving.
John 6:43-45 [NASB]
Not entirely 'meaningless' if the goal is to place sovereign control in the free will of man rather than the predetermined will of God.
My point was that some alter the text and suggest we were chosen to be in Christ before the foundation of the world.
I am not referring to the C vs A doctrinal debate as being meaningless. I am referring to some Calvinists playing word games about some points that are meaningless. I believe double predestination. Listening to the word games many Cals play to try to make a pitiful effort in explaining that they only believe single predestination is a cross between comedy and pitifulness.