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". . .you are not among my sheep." (John 10:26)

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"but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep." (John 10:26)

My Arminian brothers have a problem when it comes to who takes credit for the salvation of their souls, and the point at which they have an issue is at the point of faith.

When looking at two people who have heard the gospel, one saved and one not, the Arminian gives himself credit for why he is counted among the children of God. He reasons that he chose God while his neighbor didn't. There was something in him that his neighbor was lacking. He responded while his neighbor didn't, so he naturally assumes that he was either smarter, more humble, more receptive, more grateful. . .

What he fails to see is that the reason he hears and responds while his neighbor does not is that he is one of God's chosen. He is among the fold of Christ. "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." (John 10:27) His sheep follow Him because there are His. They are already His! They belong to Him!. The reason that the Arminian's neighbor does not follow Christ is that his neighbor is not His. "but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep." (John 10:26)

According to Jesus, His sheep follow Him because they were His sheep to begin with.

May we all give glory to God for both His grace and the faith which receives it.
If a man chooses Christ, how is that a "work"? Or how can that man glory in that he chose God? Calvinists ASSUME that because some believe that we have the choice to choose God then we have something to glory on. That is not true. Salvation is ALL of God whether you are a Calvinist or not. Perspective is everything.
 

HankD

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"." (John 10:26)

My Arminian brothers have a problem when it comes to who takes credit for the salvation of their souls, and the point at which they have an issue is at the point of faith.

When looking at two people who have heard the gospel, one saved and one not, the Arminian gives himself credit for why he is counted among the children of God. He reasons that he chose God while his neighbor didn't. There was something in him that his neighbor was lacking. He responded while his neighbor didn't, so he naturally assumes that he was either smarter, more humble, more receptive, more grateful. . .

What he fails to see is that the reason he hears and responds while his neighbor does not is that he is one of God's chosen. He is among the fold of Christ. "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." (John 10:27) His sheep follow Him because there are His. They are already His! They belong to Him!. The reason that the Arminian's neighbor does not follow Christ is that his neighbor is not His. "but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep." (John 10:26)

According to Jesus, His sheep follow Him because they were His sheep to begin with.

May we all give glory to God for both His grace and the faith which receives it.
While I can neither take up camp in either the C or A tribes I see no problem for Arminians with this passage.

Simple -
"but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep"

Because they chose not to be among His sheep.

HankD
 

Martin Marprelate

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While I can neither take up camp in either the C or A tribes I see no problem for Arminians with this passage.

Simple -
"but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep"

Because they chose not to be among His sheep.

HankD
One of these statements in in the Bible, the other isn't:
1. "but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep."
2. "but you are not among my sheep because you do not believe."

If people choose not to be among Christ's sheep then ipso facto they have not believed in Him and Statement 2 is true of them.
If God has chosen certain people from eternity past to be His sheep through faith, then statement 1 is true of those who do not believe.
 

Earth Wind and Fire

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One of these statements in in the Bible, the other isn't:
1. "but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep."
2. "but you are not among my sheep because you do not believe."

If people choose not to be among Christ's sheep then ipso facto they have not believed in Him and Statement 2 is true of them.
If God has chosen certain people from eternity past to be His sheep through faith, then statement 1 is true of those who do not believe.
Why should Someone who has not been chosen even care about any of this? Nobody I’m pretty certain ever asked to be born, asked to be selected, to move away from sin...so the question is why go through the bother in the 1st place... nobody asked God to save them in the 1st place.
 

Van

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Just a quick note of John 10:26, you do not believe because you are not "among" my sheep. So reads the OP. But flip open your bibles, the verse reads you are not "of my sheep." Some of humankind are "of My sheep" and some are not. A person open to the gospel, thus not soil #1, and willing to accept God and His Word, is "of My Sheep." They are not yet His sheep, but they might become His sheep. When Jesus said the fields are white for harvest, He was referring to people who were "of My sheep." Once again we find the Calvinist leaning translations corrupting the text, NIV, ESV, and NLT. Once again, I point to the NASB, NKJV, LEB and CSB as being faithful to the text rather than agenda driven.
 

thatbrian

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So now you are saying Ephesians 1:4 is saying that all believers were saved before the foundation? Ephesians 1:4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
Yes, we all know that. But the churches were Gentile.

Yes, we all know that. But the churches were Gentile.

Yes, we all know that. And it is "churches" not "Chruches." Don't you ever spell check your posts?

So now you are saying that claiming Ephesians 1:4 is true is false? What other bible verses do you think are a lie?

So now you are saying all these verses are a lie?


Acts 15:12 Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them.

Acts 13:46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.

Ephesians 3:1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,

Romans 11:13 For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:

1 Timothy 2:7 Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.

2 Timothy 1:11 Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.

"Therefore" is one word. Don't you ever spell check your posts? How do you expect to be taken seriously when you can't even spell "therefore" correctly?

Yes, we were chosen before the foundation of the world, but we were called and saved in time. We weren't saved from eternity past, as one poster has twisted my OP to suggest.

That same poster clearly defined a gospel that is false, as his belief system. He stated:
While I can neither take up camp in either the C or A tribes I see no problem for Arminians with this passage.

Simple -
"but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep"

Because they chose not to be among His sheep.

HankD

First, regardless of your statement, you are in a camp. You are only fooling yourself with this statement.

Second, do sheep chose their shepherd? Is that how it works?

The passage clearly explains why some people follow Christ and some don't, just like the parable of the Sower.

"You do not believe." And, why don't they believe? Because they are not His sheep. If they were His sheep, they would believe.
 

TCassidy

Late-Administator Emeritus
Administrator
If a man chooses Christ, how is that a "work"?
Because "choose" is a verb, an action verb, something you DO.

Or how can that man glory in that he chose God?
Because he chose God.

Calvinists ASSUME that because some believe that we have the choice to choose God then we have something to glory on.
If you choose God you have something to glory in. If God chose you, you have nothing to glory in.

That is not true.
Of course it is.

Salvation is ALL of God whether you are a Calvinist or not.
Either you chose God or God chose you. Only ONE is all of God.
 

HankD

Well-Known Member
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One of these statements in in the Bible, the other isn't:
1. "but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep."
2. "but you are not among my sheep because you do not believe."

If people choose not to be among Christ's sheep then ipso facto they have not believed in Him and Statement 2 is true of them.
If God has chosen certain people from eternity past to be His sheep through faith, then statement 1 is true of those who do not believe.
You employ the logic of men beyond its limits.

HankD
 

HankD

Well-Known Member
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First, regardless of your statement, you are in a camp. You are only fooling yourself with this statement.
.

Wrong, I denounce the abuse of the works of both John Calvin and Jacobus Arminius.

1 Corinthians 1:12 Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.

1 Corinthians 3:4 For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?

As the brazen serpent was eventually worshiped by the Israelites, the works of these men come close to being worshiped and have caused one of the greatest rifts in Trinitarian Christianity.

Addendum: After re-reading this post I want to modify something above : I denounce the abuse of the works of John Calvin and Jacobus Arminius.


HankD
 
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TCassidy

Late-Administator Emeritus
Administrator
Wrong, I denounce the abuse of the works of both John Calvin and Jacobus Arminius.
Hank, what about those of us who came to the position of Particular Redemption, not by reading the works of John Calvin, Augustine of Hippo, John Gill, or any of the historic or contemporary "Calvinists?"

I came to my position on soteriology by doing a critical study of the bible. (One of the reasons I eschew the term "Calvinist." If anything, I am a "Biblicist.")

Most of my friends and colleagues in ministry are (again, there doesn't seem to be a word all or even most will accept to describe the "in between" theology of those who claim to be neither Calvinist nor Arminian - but I stand by my assertion that those "in betweenites" are, in fact, Semi-Pelagian - their innate faith got the ball rolling and God took over and did the rest), in their words, "neither."

We just don't make it an issue. As far as I am concerned the issue is that we are in Christ, not how we got there. One does not have to be a theologian or a bible scholar in order to be saved.

But it seems to me that when we begin to honestly examine ourselves we will come to the conclusion there is nothing about us worthy of salvation (1 Timothy 1:15) and that as we continue to examine ourselves we must look closely at the origin of that faith we did not have, but now do have. Where did that faith come from and why did it not exist all the other times I heard the Gospel and did not respond?

The oft asked question, "Why did you get saved when you heard the Gospel preached and the guy sitting next to you didn't" has never been satisfactorily answered. To me, the only reasonable answer is "God took my old, cold, dead heart of unbelieving stone and replaced it with a warm, loving, believing heart of flesh."

With man, fallen man, faith is impossible. But with God, all things are possible.

So, with all that said, I get my understanding of soteriology from the bible, not from reading the commentaries. I started this journey in the bible, and I completed the journey in the bible. :)
 

HankD

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Hank, what about those of us who came to the position of Particular Redemption, not by reading the works of John Calvin, Augustine of Hippo, John Gill, or any of the historic or contemporary "Calvinists?"

I came to my position on soteriology by doing a critical study of the bible. (One of the reasons I eschew the term "Calvinist." If anything, I am a "Biblicist.")

Most of my friends and colleagues in ministry are (again, there doesn't seem to be a word all or even most will accept to describe the "in between" theology of those who claim to be neither Calvinist nor Arminian - but I stand by my assertion that those "in betweenites" are, in fact, Semi-Pelagian - their innate faith got the ball rolling and God took over and did the rest), in their words, "neither."

We just don't make it an issue. As far as I am concerned the issue is that we are in Christ, not how we got there. One does not have to be a theologian or a bible scholar in order to be saved.

But it seems to me that when we begin to honestly examine ourselves we will come to the conclusion there is nothing about us worthy of salvation (1 Timothy 1:15) and that as we continue to examine ourselves we must look closely at the origin of that faith we did not have, but now do have. Where did that faith come from and why did it not exist all the other times I heard the Gospel and did not respond?

The oft asked question, "Why did you get saved when you heard the Gospel preached and the guy sitting next to you didn't" has never been satisfactorily answered. To me, the only reasonable answer is "God took my old, cold, dead heart of unbelieving stone and replaced it with a warm, loving, believing heart of flesh."

With man, fallen man, faith is impossible. But with God, all things are possible.

So, with all that said, I get my understanding of soteriology from the bible, not from reading the commentaries. I started this journey in the bible, and I completed the journey in the bible. :)
I admire your position and others who know how to use labels when they are needed.
To help and not to denigrate (although sarcasm can be an effective teaching tool).

Myself? well my testimony certainly would not give credence to anything but grace alone.

I was saved from atheism and unrestraint in thought and deed - although being in the military at the time just before my salvation
I could not live the life style I wanted.

My awakening came from reading the scriptures. Where did that desire come from in the first place? Don't know, the Holy Spirit I assume.

But i DID resist, for a long time.

Somewhere in my resisting apparently something happened - one doesn't resist something/someone one doesn't believe exists.

IMO, the thrashing around in social media boards such as the BB trying to resolve this "tension" between the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man is a colossal waste of time and energy. The only saving grace is that folks are driven to the scriptures.

I truly cannot claim allegiance to any "camp" concerning soteriology.

But I like and agree with your last sentence :)

HankD
 

thatbrian

Well-Known Member
Site Supporter
Wrong, I denounce the abuse of the works of both John Calvin and Jacobus Arminius.

1 Corinthians 1:12 Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.

1 Corinthians 3:4 For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?

As the brazen serpent was eventually worshiped by the Israelites, the works of these men come close to being worshiped and have caused one of the greatest rifts in Trinitarian Christianity.

Addendum: After re-reading this post I want to modify something above : I denounce the abuse of the works of John Calvin and Jacobus Arminius.


HankD

As students of theology, we all hold positions on these questions. Using terms, such as Calvinism or Arminianism are just ways of letting others know where we fall on these doctrines. It does not mean the following of men. It has nothing to do with those verses from 1 Corinthians.


If you truly have no position on these things, you have not read your Bible well.
 

HankD

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As students of theology, we all hold positions on these questions. Using terms, such as Calvinism or Arminianism are just ways of letting others know where we fall on these doctrines. It does not mean the following of men. It has nothing to do with those verses from 1 Corinthians.
That is true sometimes but not usually, it is easy to justify and deny our adoration of men. The pride of life.


If you truly have no position on these things, you have not read your Bible well.
you are wrong again.

HankD
 
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