James said -
how about the text in john 1?
oh yes..you told us to forget that one...not to force it will.
On the contrary --
Is "now" a good time to notice "all the details" in those first 12 verses?
John 1
4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.
5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
6 There came a man sent from God, whose name was John.
7 He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him.
Global context: "The LIGHT OF MEN" unqualified (as in – “mankind”).
The intended purpose is that ALL should believe – unqualified ALL, no limit!
"Light shines in DARKNESS" - the entire world is said to be in darkness not just the jews.
"so that ALL might believe through Him" Unqualified - the message of John in the Gospels has
gone to all the WORLD.
8 He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.
9 There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.
10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.
11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.
12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,
13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
In vs 9 the
“light comes into the World” – the same “World” that is MADE by Christ in vs 10.
This is the act of an impartial God who
"so loved the world" that He gives His Son to a race of depraved humans to be
"The Savior of the World" 1John 4:14.
It is only because of God's WILL that any are saved. Man had not ability to "Will himself" a Savior.
So our Impartial God (Rom 2:11) sends Christ our Lord and Savior to be the Atoning Sacrifice for "Our Sins" and NOT for
"Our sins only but for the sins of the Whole World" 1John 2:2
For
"God is not WILLING THAT ANY should perish" 2Peter 3.
Salvation is only by the "Will of God".
In vs 12 we
see that the action of those who received Christ is what determines the result and in the Greek the reception is in the "active voice". It
does not state that some other action was taken forcing them to be children of God and the ones thus “Changed” simply “awoke to notice the fact” that they were already in “union with Christ” some time later. (Analytical Greek NT - "indicative mood" and "active voice" used for receive in John 1:12)
(As for the “a god” arguments of some --
Notice "children of A God" just does not work here.
Notice "Nor of the will of man, but of A God" is not workable. No justification for such abuse of the text.)
The WILL of God – is that “none-should perish”. (If we use scripture to define that will.)
(But some like to see in John 1 the opportunity to for a bit of eisegesis. The chance to “Read INTO the text” the idea that God was NOT WILLING for the MANY to come to repentance and be saved – rather those born of the “will of God” are ALL that God is “willing” to save.)
Born of blood - referring to natural birth.
God's part: Sending His Son as light into the world - the same world that was made through him - (global unqualified non-restrictive context.)
not only into the world but also to his own (those he chose for himself) -
Man's part - history (those chosen as "his own" failed - they did not receive HIM).
- standing offer - BUT To as many as RECEIVED Him (by contrast to HIS CHOSEN "OWN" - who did NOT receive Him)
God's part - to them he gave the right to become children of God.
God's part - to cause those that receive him to be born again.
Calvinism "hope" of course is to
ignore the sequence - to lift God's part out - and delete man's part so that NO sequence appears - JUST God causing man to be born again - arbitrarily selecting prior to any reference of man receiving anything. Calvinism's attempt to ignore the complete text fails.
The Arminian principle of
-God first acting to supernaturally bring salvation to all,
- then calling for man to respond and receive,
- then subsequently
providing that those who act and receive - shall then have the right to become children of god following their act of receiving.
And though He comes as light into the World (the same
WORLD that He made) and
"Enlightens every man" - yet it is not to force the will - but to compel "every one of mankind" to action, as it convicts and draws mankind to choose light - to choose to OPEN the door.
John 3:19 "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.
IN the CONTEXT of God acting on man's behalf - the sinner can and often does STILL choose darkness.
Nevertheless - as John points out in Rev 3 –
"Behold I stand at the door and knock"!!
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In Christ,
Bob