What purpose does election and predestination serve?

Oh Brothers...

 

:applause:

 

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: ........... I am shocked!

 

I'm not. It's hard to argue against the truth, Brother Bob

 

...and the twisting, ripping and yanking of Scripture to support a flower is easy to understand and tolerate?

 

Webdog, this is a perfect example of why you are hard to tolerate;

If you say a theological view is wrong, but refuse to state what you believe is right, then that is hard to debate and its your responsibility to show how our view is incorrect... rather than just to say..... well thats what I believe. If you don't base your beliefs upon solid biblical truth... then its just that, a simple false belief. Now step up to the plate and go back and tell us why you believe, or exactly how you believe.... rather than just say; OK. I don't believe what Npetreley stated. Or rolling the eyes..... thats a real argument.

 

Matthew 10:29
Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will.

 

Psalms 139:16. Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.

This says that He does determine when and how they would die.

 

Here's another, and a very comforting passage, IMO:

 

Preordained

He has preordained the direction He wants all men to go, but doesn't take away that they can walk away from the path that leads to life to destruction.

As the scripture also says'

Isaiah 53:6
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

We you do not look at just at the scripture that men wants you to see and see every word that comes from the mouth of God, then God reveals the whole truth to us.

 

J.D. -- OK, one issue at a time laid out simple.

1) Salvation: Here's how I see it -- then you can show me what you got.

ALL are totally depraved sinners, NONE has a leg up (as in J.D.: "my friends heard the same thing and didn't believe" -- you suggesting they couldn't "hear," right?).

ALL can hear (as you admit). YOU believed intellectually, emotionally, and willfully -- your friends were lacking in one of those areas. That is -- YOU were filled with the Holy Spirit by your own will and they were not.

The Holy Spirit empowered you to repent and receive Christ (I hope) whereupon God GAVE you faith -- His indwelling Spirit -- spiritual gifts -- a body of "terrestrial glory" to "replace" the body you sacrificed to Him in Christ -- eternal life, etc.

Mind you -- YOU believed, THEN GOD gave you faith, etc.

Now, is that what happened --- or were you saved unto Calvin by simply assuming you were elect since you could/did "hear" and believe what you heard?? raying: See, there's a critical element missing in pure Calvinism and that is the act of faith that God requires, repentance and reception of His Son. Calvinists DON'T act (as in pray for/choose salvation or either they don't believe that such a prayer accomplishes anything (which the Bible would call a "prayer not believing" or "UNBELIEF!").

OK -- your turn. Go.

skypair

skypair

 

This again shows that you do not truly know what Calvinism is. All Calvinist claim that we repent and believe. We do not repent and believe, could not, until the Holy Spirit gives us a nature to where we can.

 

You should know what I believe by now...hopefully, unless God has "hardened" and "blinded" you to understanding what I believe. You see the little smile after what I posted? Ususally means to be taken lightheartedly.