Featured The Adoption

That Greek term is only used by the Apostle Paul, which means to be placed as a son. It is my understanding, it was under Roman law that a father who has a son must adopt his son in order for his son to have an inheritance.

1 John 3:2 comes to mind, ". . . now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. . . ."

 

@Barry Johnson :
I'd like to make one more set of replies to address your concerns, sir, as I've made several very in-depth responses to your questions and comments over the past couple of weeks now, from my perspective.
I'm going to summarize this as succinctly as possible so that you know where I stand:

According to God's word,
Our response to the Gospel as His children is not a work of men, it is the work of God in us ( John 6:29 ).
The work "of God" is that a person believes on Christ...

We as His children had nothing to do with being the recipients of the gift or of eternal life.
We simply inherited Him ( Genesis 15:1 ) and our relationship with Him as a gift of His grace, mercy and compassion towards those "vessels" that He has decided to save from His wrath ( Romans 9 ).

If God relies on man to respond to the Gospel instead of that response being a direct result of His calling and election, then He is waiting on us to perform an act that is "worthy" of His grace.
He then rewards us with what we are seeking for...
Salvation.

By making eternal life dependent upon faith ( or any other good thing ), it turns the faith of God's elect ( Titus 1:1 ) into works ( Romans 11:5-6 ).
However, if faith is dependent upon God, and everything else that is truly good is dependent upon God ( John 3:27, James 1:17 ), then it truly is a gift ( Romans 6:23 ), not a reward for the right choice, the right behavior, the right act or set of acts on our part.

I'm not sure why that is so hard for you to grasp.

 

I'm sorry that it makes no sense to you, Barry.

I am believing the Scriptures, which state that I was chosen in Christ from before the foundation of the world ( Ephesians 1:4), I was predestined to be an adopted son of the living God ( Ephesians 1:5 ), predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son ( Romans 8:29 ), I was chosen to salvation through both the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit and my belief of the truth ( 2 Thessalonians 2:13 ), and called by the Gospel of my salvation ( 2 Thessalonians 2:14 ).

He has made me accepted in the beloved ( Ephesians 1:6 ), I am sealed unto the day of redemption ( Ephesians 1:13 ), which is the redemption of my body ( Romans 8:23 ), not my soul...which was redeemed for me at the cross ( Colossians 2:13-14 ).

I am justified by His blood ( Romans 5:9 ) and my faith in Christ's finished work on the cross for me and others like me is the evidence ( not the means ) of me being justified in God's sight and the sight of all men.

The reason I believe and was given the privilege to come to Christ is because it was given to me in His behalf not only to believe on Him, but to suffer for His sake ( Philippians 1:29 ).
My Heavenly Father gave me to His Son, and I came to Him in belief when I was called by the Gospel ( John 6:37-40, John 6:44, John 6:64-65, Romans 10:8-17, Ephesians 1:13 )...
I believed on Him for the forgiveness of my sins because He caused me to ( Psalms 65:4 ) by the power of the Spirit and by the new birth that is His miraculous work and His alone.

I was begotten through the word by Him, according to His will ( James 1:18 ), not my will ( John 1:13 ).
My faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen ( Hebrews 11:1 ), authored and finished by His Son ( Hebrews 12:2 ), and is the gift of God to His elect ( Ephesians 2:8 ), not of works, lest any man should boast ( Ephesians 2:9 ).
I am His workmanship, created "in Christ Jesus" unto good works ( Ephesians 2:10 ).

The work that He began in me He will finish ( Philippians 1:6 ).
No work of righteousness ever made me accepted in His Son, only His mercy and grace did ( Titus 4:5-6 ).

My works of righteousness are only possible because of His Spirit in me ( Acts of the Apostles 2:4, Romans 8:11-13, 1 Corinthians 12:4-11, Galatians 5:16, Philippians 2:13 ).
My faith is a fruit of the Spirit ( Galatians 5:22 ) and I did not have it until I was given it and His Spirit's sealing.
Because of my total dependence upon the Lord for His every goodness, I have nothing to stand on except His mercy and grace towards me, a vile sinner that deserves nothing but His eternal wrath and punishment.



Goodbye, Barry.
I truly do wish you well.

It seems that the more we go round and round, the more you cannot seem to understand where I'm coming from.
I assure you that I am relying on His words alone, and nothing else.
Just because I look like a follower of John Calvin's teachings does not make it so, my friend.
I do not take my cues from the teachings of men...
Calvin, Knox, Wesley, Edwards nor Rice.

I ignore them and trust only God's word...
For truly, is there any place other than His well that I can go to for the water ( Proverbs 3:5-6 )?


This will be my last reply to you on this forum.
The more we interact with one another, the more apparent it becomes to me that we are not in agreement, and truly, can two walk together unless they be agreed?
No ( Amos 3:3 ).


As you continue your days on this earth ( Job 14:1-5, Psalms 31:15 ) that the Lord has granted to you by His grace, I wish you every blessing from above that can be received of us as men.

 

Utterly false unbiblical screed. Note how Calvinists use the translation choice "adoption" to mean what the modern English means, to enter the family. However that is utter nonsense. The actual meaning of the Greek word translated "adoption" is the granting of the full rights of sonship within a family at maturity. Think of the granting the rights and responsibilities of adulthood to citizens at age 18.

This is just another example of the shoddy bible study that provides the bogus foundation of Calvinism.

 

Our bodies must die and rot. But we were saved before the foundation of the world. Eternally in God.

 

Our salvation had to be paid for. Eternal life = no beginning or end, just Like God.

 

Yet another copy and paste of same bogus interpretations, repeated over and over with never an acknowledgement of the rebuttal.
1) Yes 2 Thessalonians says we are chosen (elected) for salvation through or on the basis of faith in the truth, thus a conditional election, thus demonstrating Calvinism is bogus.

2) John 6:29 says the work God requires of us, not the work God does. See the NET translation and footnote.

3) Ephesians 2:10 is non-germane, dealing with becoming a new creation AFTER being chosen and placed in Christ. Thus this citation provides deception, suggesting support where none exists.

4) Philippians 1:6 is non-germane, dealing with the work of our indwelt Help, which we received AFTER being chosen and placed in Christ. This this is the second citation providing deception, suggesting support where none exists.

5) James 1:18 says God brought us faith by the word of truth, again teaching we were chosen (elected) for salvation through or on the basis of faith in the truth. No support for Calvinism, but yet another verse that precludes unconditional election.

6) Returning now to the Calvinist fiction of the "gift of faith" it is not found in scripture, just another falsehood among many. Romans 4:4-5, Romans 4:23-25 teach that if God credits our faith as righteousness, this results in our justification (verse 25).

7) Yes Ephesians 1:4 says we were chosen in Him before the foundation of the world. It does not say we were chosen to be placed in Him, which is the Calvinist doctrine being read into the text. Actually, what "in Him" means is that when God chose His Redeemer, His Lamb of God before the foundation of the world, God therefore corporately chose all those His Redeemer would redeem, thus He chose us in Him.

8) Romans 8:28-30 says the "redeemed" as the target group of God's redemption plan were foreknown, and that this redemption plan included predestining whoever is placed in Christ to be conformed to the image of His Son. Once again no actual support for Calvinism's bogus interpretation.

9) Yes, when God places a believer into Christ, they "arrive in Christ." We know that this is dealing with a change in spiritual location because the result is the person is "in Christ" and Christ promises to never cast them out. John 6:37 Yes those placed in Christ shall never perish but have eternal life. John 3:16.

10) John 6:65 is teaching only those God allows to believe can believe. But this refers to the exceptions where God hardens the heart, such as Judas and the Jews of Romans 11. Again absolutely no support for God hardening everyone with total spiritual inability. If that bogus doctrine were true, God would not have had to harden the hearts of the Jews in Romans 11. Thus the very verse cited actually teaches Calvinism is bogus. Scripture God hardens some hearts, Calvinism God hardens every heart. Ask yourselves, why did Jesus speak in parables with no one could understand?

11) John 17:2 repeats that only those God places spiritually into Christ receive eternal life. John 6:37 and John 3:16

12) Psalms 65:4 is actually addressing the Old Covenant, but if we interpret it to have applicability to the New Covenant then it says once again, only those chosen and placed in Christ dwell in the Kingdom of God. Again absolutely no actual support for the bogus doctrine of Calvinism.

13) This view does not make salvation dependent upon the believer, salvation does not depend on the man who wills or works but upon God alone. Romans 9:16. Unless God credits the person's faith, they are never saved. Once again a bogus strawman argument is used to bolster bogus doctrine.

P.S Barry feel free to copy and save this post.

 

Yes predestined to be adopted as children of God. God saves us according to His grace not according to our ways, thoughts, actions, deeds. So we must then be predestined as believers before our births, cause you cant be a child of God without believing in Christ. I wonder do these others on the other side think God predestines all to be the children of God? Cause if they do, they dont acknowledge the fall into sin which allied all into having Satan as their spiritual father.

Which is why you must be BORN AGAIN to have God as your spiritual FATHER, your then 'of God', and no longer of the devil.

 

People are never automatically of the Father, and somehow lose that identity after being born here into the flesh. What they are is 'of the devil' and desire to do the devil's will until born of God.

The only ones predestined to adoption are the ones God foreknows as His and so then He makes it certain at some point into their life on earth they will be born again.