Does God Desire the Salvation of All?

[Kai]

Something happened which brought the Philippian jailor trembling and falling before Paul and Silas did it not?

Since Romans 1:16 tells us that the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believes, there must be some power in the message itself. For instance, in Acts 26:28, Agrippa tells Paul, "You almost persuade me to become a Christian.” So as we can see in that case, it wasn't merely going in one ear and out the other; it was actually stirring up something inside of him, even though he ultimately rejected it.

I imagine hearing something to the effect of "Yeah, I know who Jesus is and that he was a real person so I guess I believe right? Is that all there is to it?"

Romans 10:9
that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

True saving faith is a belief that comes from the heart, not a mere intellectual acknowledgment like that exhibited by the demons mentioned in James 2.

 

[Van]

Perhaps you may want to think this through a little more. OUR faith does not merit salvation nor are we saved because we believe. Faith is evidence of salvation and we believe because we are saved! I am not trying to argue that regeneration precedes faith or anything like this - just saying that our salvation is all of grace, all of Christ, and NONE OF US!

Repentance and faith are two sides of the same coin and such will be evident in the life of one who is genuinely saved. They are not "prerequisite" (conditions) for our salvation. I don't think you have to be "Calvinist" in order to understand this but it certainly helps! Non-Calvinists are often in an uproar over whether repentance is a necessity for salvation and we usually just sit back and watch the show!

1) No, I see nothing in your post supported by scripture that might cause me to restudy the determination.

2) Yes, our faith does not merit or cause salvation. Romans 9:16

3) No, our faith is not evidence of salvation. We are chosen for salvation through faith in the truth, 2 Thess. 2:13.

4) Yes, being chosen through faith does NOT mean our faith merited or earned of salvation. Only when God chooses to credit our faith, as worthless as it may be, does our faith become the basis of our election. Romans 9:16

5) No, our repentance and faith are prerequisites of being chosen for salvation. Does this refer to evidence, a changed life? Nope. It refers to our devotion and commitment to Christ as both our Savior and our Lord. If these qualities are not present in our faith, God indicates in Matthew 13, that our "faith" will not be credited as righteousness, and therefore we will not be chosen for salvation.

 

[kyredneck]

I think it would have been better if this thread had been placed in the appropriate section.

Agree.

 

[Martin Marprelate]

4) Yes, being chosen through faith does NOT mean our faith merited or earned of salvation. Only when God chooses to credit our faith, as worthless as it may be, does our faith become the basis of our election. Romans 9:16

1 Peter 1:7. 'That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes , though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honour and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.'

 

[Van]

1 Peter 1:7. 'That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes , though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honour and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.'

I have no idea why this verse was chosen as some sort of response to my post. Is the idea that faith when credited as righteousness and protected by the power of God is not "genuine?"

Genuine faith is true, it stands up to testing, like gold purified by fire. When Christ returns with His body of born anew believers, though your faith has been tested, will be found among the others, to the praise, honor and glory of Jesus Christ.

 

[Ben1445]

Clearly my post upset/annoyed you. I apologize for that.

Don’t read into it. I’m not upset just because we see things differently.
No apology necessary.
I hope it’s not too upsetting to converse with me.