I carry a heavy burden for family and friends who are lost and blind but do not seek God. My words do absolutely nothing. Only God's divine intervention can open the eyes of the blind, like He did with me. Pray for people you know, that God may glorify himself in their lives because a prophet has no honor in his own house.
Thank you for sharing this! I encourage you to not carry the burden on yourself but give it to God to hold, tell Him about it, He will surely help you! Our Loving Father
Kaboom my Family has just about disowned me They do not want to hear as if they’re hearts have been hardened I understand GOD WILLING HE touches they’re hearts
Kaboom Be encouraged as you share the good news to family or friends, you are sowing seeds. That is not nothing. Remember, God's word doesnt return back to Him void. Family is the hardest to reach. You'll do better with strangers they dont know your past.
Kaboom Be encouraged that your words in sharing the gospel are seeds being sown. So they are doing more than you "see"..It is the Father that draws us to Jesus..In God's time
Because you can't just shove your beliefs and what you've obtained wisdom in people's faces. This is most likely the main error in Christians because it's the "truth". That will cause conflict and that will not solve anything. Try give them hope as what God gives hope to His people. Try to understand why they chose that path, pray for them and be patient. In time, they might awoken
I wept for joy listening to this on my way to work. I'm so grateful that God has given me ears to hear and eyes to see and a new heart of flesh, of which I am so undeserving.
I weep for my salvation but also carry a heavy burden for family and friends who are lost and blind but do not seek Him. My words do absolutely nothing. Only God's divine intervention can open the eyes of the blind, like He did with me. Pray for people you know that God may glorify himself in their lives because a prophet has no honor in his own house.
@The Righteousness of God In Christ Jesus no denying John 3:16, just understand that it is a description not a prescription 😉. John 3 is about why Nicodemus is not a believer and can't become one. No one can come to me unless the father draws him, is the same author , same book, and same subject.
@The Righteousness of God In Christ Jesus then why is it when Nicodemus asks "what must I do?", Jesus replies you must be born again? Nicodemus clearly realized he plays no role in this birth because he asks how dose one crawl into his mother's womb a second time?. Your view clearly goes against scripture at Evey turn.
J Pep whom did the Father draw to Jesus? Jesus said my sheep hear my voice, who are those sheep? Those who already had a relationship with the father. John 6:45 “It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me-” that’s why Jesus said, those who know the father come to me. Why didn’t some Jews know him? Eg the Pharisees, why? Cause they didn’t know the father and have a relationship with him through faith.
The ways of the Father are so deep that just when you think your walk with him is complete and you feel satisfied in your position in the Kingdom, you see some more light shed on his majestic being that makes your heart leap for Joy and even though we feel smaller in his presence we feel more secure and loved at the same time! Amen and let us give thanks that he is whom that he is and he is and he sends the Holy Spirit as a comforter. Thank you Father for thinking it, Thank you Lord Jesus for doing it and thank you Holy Spirit for keeping it going just for us! Salvation!
I talked to my mom about god and she was just like “oh yea I think i’m gonna burn in hell” and she claims she’s saved because she was baptized please pray for her! also please pray for me, i’m having a hard time with lust love you all amen
Respect and devotion to our Lord, Jesus Christ is helpful. Lord Almighty, the one true God, he knows your heart. Cleanse your heart by reaching out to God daily, respecting and loving Him for all His goodness. The god of this world is very different from God, the Almighty. god and God are two totally different entities. Until one can understand and distinguish between the two, they will not see.
I am certain than GOD chose me. I’m 42 years old since I was child I’ve always been drawn to God, since I can remember I’ve always known that God exists, but when I turned 18 years old that’s when I accepted Jesus as my savior, He’s been walking with me ever since. Being a Christian is not easy and it can be lonely at times and at times a bumpy ride too, but Jesus is faithful and He will never let you go, I love Jesus so much 🕊️
same with me. I can remember clearly when i was about 3 or 4 y.o, i believed in God when my mom taught me a short meal prayer, but at that time my mom didn't say in Jesus name though we are christian, i think my mom lack of knowledge . Not only that when i was about 5, i remember suddenly i was curious who created my parents, my grandparents, and great great great grandparents is.Idk why would i think of it in such young age. Then when i was at sunday school, my sunday school teacher taught us about creation and i believed. If i remember all of this, i am so grateful, i never feel Him is only imagination or a story telling. Because my my grandma was a devouted christian. She would tell me about hell, that made me really deeply believe that there is God
It seems to me after 27 years on my journey with the Lord there are things this side of heaven that will remain a mystery. We can look at this topic, try to see what it is that God is saying in scripture, but we can come away with different views. We do know that a partial blindness comes upon the Jewish people but we are seeing more Jewish people come to faith in Yeshua today . That tells us that the fullness of the Gentile nations prophesied about is coming to fruition. We are close , very close to the end of the age and the return of Jesus..
Andrew Corbell I struggle with the same issues you do and so on... How can God place us in a fallen world, without a choice of our very existence or even our salvation, while inheriting the distant sins of our long gone ancestors, and still be a loving God? I struggle with the idea of God being a cosmic puppet master, but I’m pretty sure every Christian has these doubts. Despite these ideas, just cling to assurance in Christ. For god knows the bigger picture, we dont
@@andrewcorbell7216 Like so many of us who have walked a life of faith a long time these are things to ponder. But we have to remember just as scripture tells us, God is good, not evil. There is no darkness in Him. Because of sin the devil was given permission to be the prince of the air , and the world literally became broken. The tree of the knowledge of good & evil is not really a contradiction..God does not tempt us, but does test us. To see if our faith is genuine and to help us to grow and develop...Why did all these things happen in the order they did? Who knows exactly. But He's given us faith to believe because of the testimonies of the gospel and Jesus is the author of that faith. Child like faith, keeping our eyes on Him is a daily thing, a work of discipline. The world is full of evil and distractions and more so today. Ultimately God will get the glory for saving us, reconciling us back to the Father, ridding the earth of evil and sin and make things new. God is in the redemptive business . You mention your biggest fear is Him not knowing you. I strongly encourage you to google all scriptures concerning faith, permanent salvation, and especially read all of John 3, 6, 10. These chapters deal with those who believe will never perish, knowing the Good Shepherds voice, and having a peace of mind that a believer is in the hand of the Father and nothing can snatch them out. Jesus tells us His desire is to give us rest in our relationship with Him. If you struggle with thinking He doesnt know you, I can assure you , if you have been born again He knows you. I would suggest spending more time reading His word, and worship in quiet time. Read Jeremiah 33:3..It changed my life forever
@@andrewcorbell7216 Excuse me but I was curious about your comment saying that the bible says the Spirit of God will not dwell in us. I hope you will allow me to share some valuable truths to help you ..If you have a pastor teaching that, my advice is to run to the nearest door and dont look back. Let me show exactly what the bible says about the Holy Spirit. These are but a few places.. 1 Corinthians 3:16 "Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?" Romans 8:11 "But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you." Romans 8:9 "However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him." Galatians 4:6 "Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” Ephesians 1:13-14 "In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory" Andrew I pray the Father touch your heart, open His word , His love to you to give the faith you need to enjoy your relationship with Him. Our faith is not IN anything in this world. It sounds to me very much like your under spiritual attack by satan. Pray according to Jeremiah 33:3..seek God with all your heart..use your authority over demons to rebuke out loud in Jesus' name. If you havent been taught how, there are prayers on youtube with warfare praying over you..Get free , so you can be free from fear and confusion..God bless you, praying for you
@@andrewcorbell7216 Its always my pleasure to help if and when I can and plz, no apology needed. I'm an old guy and been through lots so I understand.. I have been blessed by many wonderful people sowing into my life. You have the most important thing besides faith. Desire. Let that desire lead you into deeper truths that no man can show you. Only the Holy Spirit. Being good enough? Hmm..Well my thought basically on that is that none of us are good enough. Jesus did it all my friend. Thats why it is called the good news. Its His grace by faith, that makes us right with the Father ..Jesus' righteousness imparted to the believer!! we are blessed with every spiritual blessing we can ever need!!! Man it doesnt get any better in this life. How cool is that? With that being said, we are living in a dangerous time and will probably see more and more demonic activity now..Look at all the riots and lawlessness in the US...Listen I'm online a lot. If I can help you with anything please feel free to ask. I'm retired so I have lots of free time my brother. Nice to hear back from u and God bless you ..
It is a hard topic to understand. But if we placed our Trust in Jesus, then I will Trust that He made the right judgement call in choosing whom the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven be given to and withheld from. I still pray that God reveal to us and give us the knowledge and wisdom to understand what He wants us to understand concerning those texts in Jesus name amen. Godbless brothers and sisters!
I believe anyone that wants to be saved, Will be saved, when they're ready to submit their will to the will of God and seek him with their whole heart. Matthew 12-20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
Bible speaks quite a bit on the Lord hardening people. If we we believe all will be saved we're in a bad spot. That's worldly and not Godly. He does speak of all coming to the truth but that not all will come to it hence there's a hell. If all were to be saved he'll would have not existed. Jesus speaks about on this Himself. Do you not know or understand that many will never see, they can't see. Doesn't mean we should not continue in our witnessing. Not all Jews will be children of the promise. Do you not know this. Same with all.
I wasn’t raised in a Christian family , or raised in a Christian environment /association , but associated with many people growing up . By my late 20s I was living a self destructive life as were many in a surfing community , North shore , Hawaii , where you could find all the worldly pleasures . I felt I’d never recover from bad habits mixed with good , So , ok bad . But I was self employed and some customers were Christians including a wife of a pastor that was the nicest lady of God . All my Christian customers were my favorite customers . All and all , I started to call on Lord Jesus and reading the Bible and in time I found out it was all true , there Is a living God that created us and everything else that was created . And what I found that what Lord Jesus said gave me hope , I can recover from self destruction ! So now I follow Lord Jesus . Families not too happy about it but it’s worth it , believing the truth . Raised and surrounded by unbelievers , yet I turned to Father God and He pointed to his Son , Lord Jesus Christ my redeemer , my Savior . Our God . Peace and God Bless .
I've just listened through this 4 or 5 times because it raised a very good question and I noticed a blind spot in my comprehension. I noticed that I didn't agree with the points made initially, and so rather than dismiss them, I explored them. This has been very fruitful and I give thanks to God for the revelations given through His Word and Holy Spirit.
@@poeticsun645 fr, i used to debate people heavily trying to get the message , the truth deep in there minds that i have received and each time it was always the same rebuttal that passively though not correct silience the message within them, now i see, it was not handed to them that they may see for they have rejected the truth because they accept not the truth, and because the truth has not accepted them. Grace of God is amazing yet its always saddening that many have not this gift to salvation, it hurts all we can do is pray for them
@@leoanim8s838 I hear that, I think that we are called to give the Gospel message but it's only God that will soften hearts. What we say may plant a seed that can bring forth fruit at a later time so we just do our bit as Kingdom ambassadors 😇
This is why hypercalvinism is a dangerous problem in Christianity. At the beginning the answer was said as "Man has no self-determination" and then later says "No one is made blind against their will". So which is it? Is God preventing some to salvation or not? It's a simple Yes or No. It shouldn't take 12 minutes to answer this question. Some other thoughts I have listed if anyone cares to read: - Regarding Self Determination salvation: 2 Thess 2:10 "They[wicked people] perish because they did not accept the love of the truth and so be saved." (So did God not will hard enough for them to be saved? or did they not choose to accept the truth?) - Regarding faith: Why would Jesus rebuke so harshly those with little faith and praise the ones who have great faith if it is not somewhat a product of free will (im not arguing that it cannot be gifted but that it is not ONLY gifted) - Then Piper leaves out the next verse of 2 Timothy 2:26 "Then they may come to their senses and escape the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will." (Showing a combination of God's will and then subsequently mans choice to respond) - Regarding repentance: If Jesus was aware that repentance is ONLY able to be achieved because God has predetermined some and not others then he would have zero reason to speak about the kingdom of God. He could have lived his life, died for sins and ascended to heaven with nobody in the world knowing who he was. Why would it matter if he revealed himself as the messiah to the disciples? God already determines who's in the kingdom right? If there are believers struggling with this you're not alone. Please consider listening to Dr. Leighton Flowers on his youtube channel "Soteriology 101". He will clarify this confusion better than I ever could.
All I want Is salvation. I just want Jesus. I don’t care if I’m poor, depressed, etc . I just want Jesus and to be saved. I know that Jesus is the Truth and the way and the life. I asked God to save me over and over and over again. Why can’t He save me? Lord please, mercy
Hello friend I just want to mention that you shouldn’t seek salvation in and of itself. Seek Jesus because he is wonderful. Then seek salvation so that you can spend eternity with him. But don’t worry and keep praying because it is the Lord himself that will give you the desires and the faith. And one more thing being saved means believing that God is love and that he sent his Son to die for your sins. Don’t doubt whether or not he can save you but believe that he has. 🙏🏿
@@harisonfekadu hello brother! I believe in Christ and I’ve been saved by Him. He paid for everyone of my sins on that cross and He promises to save all those who trust in Him. Thank for the comment. I’ve been growing in my faith the past two years brother. God bless you and Christ is Lord! :)
If you want to know why God hardens some hearts and not others, read the Bible. He will harden those who continue to make themselves His enemy even after hearing His word. He will not harden those who are responding in faith (which we all have the opportunity to do, by the grace of God). When the Word is spoken, respond well. The more we harden ourselves, the more he may harden us. Likewise, those who respond in faith can have their faith grown by God. Be careful! The measure you use when you hear is what is used to add to you. (Mark 4:24) This is how to be good soil. Realize your response upon hearing the Word is up to you, and is the difference between the Word being sown on a path, or in good soil. TAKE HEED WHAT YE HEAR. Trust the Word of God, not Calvinism.
Yes, God wills for all to be saved, but He will not break our will to do it. He desires our cooperation and communion, for that is the nature of love and God is Love. So He will harden the hearts of the self-hardened by freezing His communication to them. Repentance is the thawing of the heart that God looks for so as to reopen those lines of communication, making the work of grace possible again in that soul.
John Piper, the man talking in this video is a Calvinist. Calvinism is a false doctrine which teaches God has selected some for salvation, others for damnation. God is rich in mercy not desiring for anyone to perish. None of us can know when someone is at a point of having a reprobate mind. What we should be doing is praying daily for the lost to come to faith in Jesus .
@@davidochiengbuoga7165 Th ewill of God according to John Piper, who is Calvinist, is God has selected some for salvation and some for damnation. But the will of God according to the bible is first in John 3 where it says WHOEVER believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life . Also referencing Jjohn 6: 39 This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. 40 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
Or seek and don’t find or don’t seek, still find. There are ad nauseam accounts of people who have sought god “with all their heart, souls and mind” and still aren’t convinced that he’s there and people who live their lives in “wretchedness” and have testimony of god intervening and saving them. Just because you have a verse that states this trite “promise”, doesn’t make it true. But of course, the only (tiring) thing to come back with is: ...well... you didn’t really do the “special” seeking.
@@ardbegthequestion depends on the person. God has made his presense known in this realm. Its the person that needs to accept it. Cant see God? Thats your problem
@@ardbegthequestion no if you seek you will find. If you didn't find then you didn't look hard enough. You will find God when you seek Him with your whole heart.
Caitlin Maynell how do I know when I’ve used my whole heart? Does one continually need to do this much heart to speak/interact with god? I bet not. Plenty of sinning Christians still able to claim this relationship is happening. Yet I can honestly pray a prayer for him to reveal himself in a meaningful way, only to keep getting cosmic crickets. & How much shitty things in my life does god need to wait for before I am begging for him to be there? Honestly read back this sentiment. It comes across like an abusive relationship. I get this, I was in for 30+ years. But the trite, anecdotal retorts just don’t cut it anymore. I have many loving relationships with people and none are this difficult or require so much mental gymnastics to even just get to “hey look at us, we is in a relationship”... End of snark.
I tried talking with my younger brother about the one known as Jesus; I tried 3 times. Each time, he was more angry than the last; and he told me to shut up. I used to be in the Air Force. I wasn't able to reenlist. I was later accepted into the Air Reserves and had plans to return to active duty. Shortly after being accepted into the Reserves, I broke my back. 3 PT test failures later, I realized that the military was no longer an option. I walked into my hotel room and burst into tears. But then I remembered the 4th time I had a conversation with my younger brother. I had 'given up' on him having a shot at salvation; but the 4th time, *he came* to *me* and apologized. He wanted to hear me out this time. He is a Christian now; this is a man who went out and got a pentagram tattooed to his elbow (I think he did it to spite me after our 3rd conversation.) I don't know what the connection is, if any; but maybe we should stop trying to take things into our own hands and just pray more. It may be a sort of arrogance to think that you can 'change' someone. God has to do it. After all, I wasn't always a Christian and nobody could change my mind; I remember all-too-well. God had to do it, Himself, for me. It used to upset me. "Why, God? Why did you reveal yourself to me? What was the point? Nobody wants to hear me. I don't understand." It wasn't until I let go and left everything in His hands that things started to work out. I can't say for certain weather or not that's how it works for everyone; but that's how it worked for me. I felt so happy when I looked at my brother's new picture. He was standing under a statue of Jesus, smiling. That's something that I never thought I'd see. It was like God was telling me "you are *not* failing. It's ok; I am here." I'm still stressed out and my future seems so hopeless and bleak; but I know that God is with me. Somehow He is going to get me thru this life, broken back or not. My grades started to slip (I had been relying on my GI Bill to get paid for going to school.) The school ended up kicking me out and wouldn't give me a second chance. I have no income now and the bank is threatening to take away my car, the only thing I have left. I purchased it in 2015 when I still had a career ahead of me (or so I thought.) With a little over $5,000 left to pay off this 30,000 and something dollar car, It's going to be taken away, like everything I put into it never mattered, just like the Air Force. I'm trying to file for disability with the VA for mental health issues and my back; but even that isn't looking very good. I feel so alone and scared; but I know that God is with me in these hard times. We don't get to understand all of it; and I don't know why. If times are hard for you, you're not the only one. Everything happens for a reason; and more often than not, we don't really get to figure out 'why.' Sometimes I feel like it's just the book of Job, to see if I'm still His guy. There are times where I want to just throw that book away and quit for good; but I know that it's real. I'm just grateful that my family loves me enough to let me sleep in the garage, even though I'm a useless bum who can't work anymore. God bless you all. I sincerely hope that everything works out well for everyone, and I do mean everyone. I'm a bit of a 'troll' when it comes to the internet; and again, the 'mental health' issues... I'm not mentally sound. I may be bipolar, among having PTSD issues, anxiety over many things, and a busted back... but overall, I'm a 'good' guy. Although I tend to insult people and argue online, I don't mean it. We're all just people; and we're all just trying to get by. I pray that God does pull through and guide us all in the right direction. Peace.
Biblically speaking none of us are good. We must realize the wretch we are so we may stay in repentance. Your messages touched my heart. I will be praying for you brother. May God bless you with heavenly knowledge and wisdom and truly teach you what it means to deny yourself so He may lead you. In Jesus name I pray , amen
Our Heavenly Father hasn’t forgotten about your life and he’s still working on your life too he’s a loving father and he’s closer than you think! We don’t deserve his mercy but he’s given us mercy and love, not all of us perfect either! Thank you for your story!
That's the point. When we understand salvation from this perspective it gives God ALL of the glory because we realize how much of a gift salvation really is. We realize it's not a result of self-determination but the grace of God. He gets all the credit and the gospel becomes infinitely precious to us.
U always were OK JUST PRAY TO THE HOLY SPIRIT AND U RECEIVE EVERYTHING HE GUIDES EVERYONE AND PRAT TO OUR CREATURE HALLOW BE HIS NAME .BLESS DON'T EVER WORRIE UR GOING TO HEANEN EVERYONE IS GOING OUR CREATURE DOESN'T DESTROY HIS CREATIONS OK DONT BELIEVE THE NEGATIVE TEX ILL SHOW U HOW THE HOLY SPIRIT IS IN U AND EVERYONE IN THE WORLD WITH NO BINLES STORIES .THIER READING SAME OLD THINGS OVER AND OVER IVE READ THE BIBLE 5 TUMES AND LAUGH
This is an excellent explanation of God's sovereignty. It is not up to the man who wills or runs but God who has mercy according to His own righteous purpose.
Christ will not turn away anyone who comes to him. Not one. John 6:37 "All whom My Father gives (entrusts) to Me will come to Me; and the one who comes to Me I will most certainly not cast out [I will never, no never, reject one of them who comes to Me]." To believe that God damns some to hell before birth is a doctrine of demons, IMO. That belief goes against His very character. We see what the Father is like in the Son, when He walked on this earth. Healing the sick, delivering the oppressed, and raising the dead to life, having mercy on all who came to Him. Did you see anyone He turned away? No, no one. He is a merciful God full of grace, not desiring that any perish but that all come to the knowledge of the truth and receive the free gift of eternal life with Him. That is His character. Ezekiel 33:11 "Say to them, As I live, says the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?" You can choose to turn away from Him, but that is on you, not God.
@@donpetty7584 "To believe that God damns some to hell before birth is a doctrine of demons, IMO" It may be your opinion but your opinion does not agree with the Word of God. I agree that whoever comes to Him, He will not turn away but the question is who can come to Him? No one comes to the Son except whom the Father calls.
The best explanation of these scriptures. I recall reading The first few chapters in Isaiah and struggled to understand why God would say this. Of course, judgement is the reason. Thank you Pastor John. I love your teaching. Blessings in Christ.
God's will is above ALL. Anything that has happened was permitted by HIS will. We have free will, but even that aligns with GOD'S will, no matter the choice. Through his will, he demonstrates his love, mercy, kindness, wrath, justice and peace. I pray to be on the graceful side of his will. I also pray that anyone who reads this comment asks to be enlightened about the depth of his will if you don't know already. Peace and blessings to you all.
When it is said (in the question), that "GOD Keeps People From Salvation", that is going beyond Holy Scripture. Just incase anyone is shaking their head, "yeah". It seems like their doctrine of man is a too elevated. We are headed for hell, born in sin and trespasses, enemies of GOD In CHRIST, following satahn in the kingdom of darkness. However, GOD Intervenes On Behalf of HIS Elect, Granting Them Faith (by the Preaching and Hearing of the Glorious Gospel of CHRIST), by HIS Grace In CHRIST, alone. HE Converts Them, Taking Out the heart of Stone and Giving Them a Heart of Flesh, Making Them to Respond in Faithful-Obedience, rather than in rebellion. And this - all to the Praise of HIS Glorious GRACE In CHRIST!
So, by “God intervenes”, what your saying basically is that God put microchips on some people’s (“Elects”) brains (figuratively speaking) that will make them love Him. How genuine do you think is their love for God in this case? In fact, why didn’t God just not create those He ended up NOT electing? What you’ve been saying above do not address the heart of the question(s) vs calvinism: If God is Just, was He being fair by choosing who will be saved, and what was the basis of His choice, seeing everyone is a sinner in His eyes?
Let me ask you, how did God harken to Joshua's voice (as the Bible says God did) if Joshua had no voice of his own, save for what God forces him to say?
Yup. That's basically it, right there. Both Armenianism and Calvinism are both in part Scriputrally spot-on, in part Scripturally WAYYYYY off. Armenianism teaches a person can somehow "lose salvation" despite Scrip[ture being PACKED with saying otherwise, and Calvinism teaches this "predestination" thing. Not even close. (See comment above.)
This is good stuff. We cant even wrap our heads around the magnitude of The Love, The Grace & The Mercy of The Cross. The message of the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved it is THE POWER OF GOD, we are reconciled to God in Christ, Praise His Majesty
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! Matthew 23:37 ESV
@@wisevirgin3405 Hi. I also believe that, but it does not mean that we cannot act upon God's appeals to be saved or to come to Him. God through His grace can enable us to believe and God never forces or coerces us to believe. I appreciate Dr. John Piper very much, but I just don't agree with his Calvinistic presuppositions. In your own time, you can look up the following Scriptures: Jer. 7:31; Ez. 18:30-32; Mark 6:6; Luke 7:30; John 3:36; 5:30-47 (which forms part of the context of John 6:35-71); Acts 18:27; Rom. 9:30-32; 10:13; 1 Tim. 2:4-6; 4:10; 1 Joh:2:2 and there are many others. Obviously many discussions can be held about these Scriptures, but I don't think this is necessarily the right platform to have long discussions. If you want so some good alternative answers to verses that Calvinistic brothers and sisters in Christ use to support there doctrines, look at the Soteriology 101 website and TH-cam-channel; Dr. Ken Wilson's book, The Foundation of Augustinian-Calvinism and follow and enquire some non-Calvinistic commentaries. As time and your studying of resources go by, you will probably stumble upon some great commentaries and articles. I know I have. Thanks for replying🙂
Yes, but Jesus ALSO said that NO MAN could come to Him unless the Father "draws" them... and those are the ones "chosen" or "elected" before the foundation of the world. You cannot use SELECT verses (that leads to heresy) you must harmonize ALL RELATED verses. www.5thkingdomofheaven.com/chapter-1 ---
exactly what i’m thinking. I don’t quite get his explanation. It’s as if God is looking around to see how people are responding to Him. If they aren’t responding with repentance, He hardens their heart even more, as a judgment. How can this make sense if man has no freewill?
I feel that praying is a big part of the gift of the revelation of truth and believing. I was a doubting believer but I prayed every day for truth and for YHWH to bless me with taking the vail away. Slowly over time He is testing me and I keep praying, every time I keep going when I'm tested He blesses me with new levels of hearing learning and seeking Him and I promise it's not easy, more than worth it though. The ALMIGHTY answers prayers. We are only blind when we choose over and over to do wrong and ignore the Most High. The bible says he gave them over to their sin, that implies they had many chances and wore out the patience of the Most High. Pray your name is in the book of life, pray your name is not blotted out of the book of life, pray you don't fall into temptation, etc many verses that imply it's up to us , not fully, but in part. Also many scriptures about praying and seeking Him no matter what, that imply the power of our choices to believe and sometimes stubbornly, blind faith produces strongest faith and relationship with the ALMIGHTY and the Savior. He desires all to be saved, simply said, so it must be our will and choice, again at least in part. Love you all keep shining and believing!
@@brendonburdett7015 What do you mean by "unbelieving Christians"? How do you define "Christian"? I'd say anyone who believes Jesus is the uniquely divine and ontologically equal Son of The Father, you qualify as a "Christian." I think there are tons of Christians who are not going to get eternal life, but I'd call any believer a Christian.
Mike Winger has a great video on Judicial Hardening. I do not believe that Jesus regenerates me so that I can be repent and believe. I believe, and the Bible teaches that, Jesus offered me a genuine offer of salvation and hope in Christ, and I have to respond in my free will. That's why jesus says its wise to build your house on the rock of Jesus. The people who dont are foolish.
Those of us who, for some reason utterly lost to us, have been called to life have only this to cling to: "By grace alone... through faith alone... in Christ alone." Eternity is too short a time to fully acknowledge this wonder!
I never noticed before but "so that they may" doesn't imply that God's purpose is for them not to see or hear, just that it allows them the freedom not to.
Yes, this is why it is the Way it is. Suppose you have the task of preparing your Son or Daughter's wedding. Would you invite those who hate your Son or even worse those who would see your daughter with someone else in an adulterous way on their wedding celebration. God gives grace to the humble but the proud He opposes.
I'm not a Calvinist, but I do believe that 'so that' in Luke 8:10 (Greek: hina) does imply purpose. I don't think that can be avoided. Formally at least, the text states that God's purpose in giving parables was so that people might not see or understand.
Interesting responses, thanks. It is a bit of a chicken and egg situation I think. Free will and who chooses what, I mean. From our limited perspective it can be looked at either way since cause and effect are inextricable but God presumably sees it as it is. In science that's what we'd call an observer effect so I personally can't disagree with Calvinists or non-Calvinists on the issue. Not that I'm awfully well studied on the matter but that's just how it appears to me at the moment.
No, that's how they talked back then, and that's the best way for the Greek and Hebrew to be translated into English. When it says "may" or "might" that doesn't always mean what it would mean in our culture today
You might want to read the next verse before you conclude that no one is excluded *How are they to call on one they have not believed in?* And how are they to believe in one they have not heard of? And how are they to hear without someone preaching to them? Romans 10:14 Can't call unless you believe first.
For all of you worried about your salvation on this thread, the scripture says "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved". It's that simple! Jesus died for your sins. Believe and turn from your sin. There is a combination of God calling people and us choosing to follow Him. That's Biblical. You don't need to overthink it!
Amen we can not work for our salvation only believe but I'm still going to keep the 10 commandments because the fruit of the spirit is Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
Powerful! Thank you for bringing clarity to this difficult subject. Romans 11:15 For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? Romans 11:25-26 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The Deliverer will come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; If God didn’t harden the Jews, then I wouldn’t be saved. And to know that my being saved is contributing to the final salvation of Israel... wow! How rich is the mercy of God!
For the seeds of faith to sprout in our lives, we must avoid satans grasp and have an abundance of faith with daily humble prayer. Asking for strength and forgiveness.🙏
We have to accept the mystery of this wisdom to harden or soften the heart. Not presuming we can understand more than our finite minds are capable of; as if the mind of God could be wrapped up in a neat little box and fully understood, by his creatures. That's an important application to make. We just need to marvel and share the gospel all the more freely, widely, intentionally and urgently, because we don't know whom God has chosen to hear and believe. May we be used to this purpose.
I know God was calling out of a new age cult, it was so incessant that I knew I had to come to Jesus, and not long after I was born again, repented of being a part of this cult, and other sins I had been a part of thank God for my salvation!
Jesus says that when a demon is cast out, 7 more will arrive. He says this in response to the Jewish leaders demanding a sign. Thus if they aren't going to believe, it would be worse for them if Christ did more to convince them.
My first time listening to a Dr. Piper podcast. Surprised to hear him demolish Calvinism at 9:35, and make the most clear statement of the "free will" position (at least mine) that I've heard yet (based on Isaiah 6:9-10). *_"This indifference to God is what they want._* There's nobody kicking and screaming into blindness ... "Nobody is made blind to God, who loves to see God." (Piper). I totally agree. God, in His Grace, reveals Himself to us in the Gospel, and through HIs Creation, and we choose to either believe Him, or to remain in unbelief, - it's our choice. Either way, He will remain faithful to us, because He's a righteous God, and He doesn't want anyone to perish in unbelief. (Mark 16:16) _Whoever _*_believes_*_ and is baptized _*_will be saved,_*_ but whoever does _*_not believe will be condemned._* (Rom 4:3) For what does the Scripture say? *_“Abraham believed God,_* and it was counted to him as righteousness. (John 6:35) And Jesus said unto them, ... *_he that believeth on me shall never thirst._* The devil causes some people not to believe and remain unsaved: (Luke 8:12) ... then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, *_lest they should believe and be saved._* Jesus marvelled at the unbelief in His own hometown: (Mark 6:6) And *_he marvelled because of their unbelief._* And he went round about the villages, teaching. Because someone doesn't believe in Him, does that make God unrighteous? No, He's always faithful, it is the one refusing to believe whom God will righteously judge: (Rom 3:3) For *_what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?_* (Rom 3:6) God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world?
GOD BLINDED THE JEWS SO THAT THE GENTILES WILL ENTER THE KINGDOM. BUT THE EYES OF THE JEWS WILL BE OPENED AT A LATER TIME WHEN THEY WILL CRY AND MOURN FOR THE ONE THAT THEY PIERCED. THANK YOU JESUS CHRIST FOR YOUR SACRIFICE FOR OUR REDEMPTION AND SALVATION AND YOUR MIRACLES AND WORDS AND YOUR DIVINE MERCY AMEN ❤️ SHALOM AMEN ❤️
Jesus knows all things Including each person's future, He knows who will repent and who will not. He knows who will Choose him and who will not. He never interferes with our freedom of Choice.
If God hadn't done so much work and Sent his "word" to us and his apostles and prophets and even came to the earth himself! and when he was here, Jesus was a man of Toil, a hardworking man. Imagine if he had never done all this, perhaps none would be saved!
The Scripture that tells us HOW to get into the Kingdom and How to be Born again is John 3:5 and Acts 2:38. Jesus said in John 3:5 That we must be Born again of water and of The Spirit in order to get into The Kingdom. Acts 2:38 Peter explains HOW to be Born again, and that is to repent and be baptized in Jesus Christ Name for the remission of your sins and then you will be filled with The Holy Ghost. Then you will be RAPTURE READY! Then Jesus also says in Mark 16 That these signs will follow them that believe and is baptized, it says they will speak in New Tongues . The New Tongues are The SIGN or EVIDENCE that The Holy Ghost has entered you and now you are BORN again! Just like in the natural when a baby is born there is the water it is brought forth out of and when it is born it already has a soul, and when it takes its first breath, and that is his spirits entering into him/her. And whatever country that child is born in, it will be evident by the language it will automatically began to speak. The same in the Spiritual, we must be brought forth out of the water ( baptized) and then GOD fills us with His Spirit. And now we are BORN AGAIN into The Kingdom of GOD, so now we WILL speak the native tongue of heaven because this is The Country we are Born into The Kingdom of Heaven is the place of our rebirth. GLORAAAY Be To Our GOD!
No where does the Bible say say that God is withholding or preventing salvation. Jesus said that Satan deceives us and that repentance leads to mercy. While God permits the god of this world to deceive those _willing_ to be deceived, Jesus said those who come to him will "in no wise be cast out." (John 6:37). Contrary to your analysis, God will *_always_* grant repentance to those who seek him out. You are making God out to be a liar, and that is extremely dangerous.
John is a Calvinist, that is one of their beliefs pray for him to repent from any false doctrine and to accept Jesus Christ as his true Lord and Savior, so that his name will be written in the lamb' book of life. God want you to pray for your pastor when they're in error when it comes to the gospel of Jesus Christ . if you love John, pray for him.
I think you're misreading John's and the Bible's message. He never said that those who seek God out will be rejected, on the contrary: they are exactly the elect. The thing about God's sovereignty is comparable to the author of a book - God operates on a higher level than us. If a person believes in God and chooses to come, the ultimate reason is that it's God's sovereign will, a gift of faith and a desire for Jesus, that God gives to those whom he chooses. The Bible does in fact say that God hardens certain hearts, Pharaoh as one example, the Israelites in Isaiah's time another. I'd suggest listening to 8:10, and especially 9:10, where John says the same as you in that the hardening of hearts is not happening to people who love the word of God. This truth is an assurance to God's people in that if they find a desire to seek God, then the fact they have that desire assures them that their salvation is God's will, and nothing can break that bond since God upholds our salvation!
@@jeffvandyke1239 I completely agree. It is both. We are both predestined as His elect AND we turn and decide to follow Him or not (free will). Saying it is only personal choice is also a bit on the other side of the continuum and equally finite thinking. It's not either/or, both can be simultaneously and compatibly true.
The Bible is clear, God Himself chose who would be saved. The election is His choice, and it was predestined at a very specific time in history - “before the foundations of the world.” God did not look through the corridor of time to see who would eventually choose Him - that is impossible with God being All Knowing. It is by God’s sovereignty that He chose. It was a choice completely independent of any human will or intervention. If God looked down the corridor of time, if God’s decision was based on man’s decision, that would be God choosing in a passive sense, and man choosing in the active sense. But Scripture uses active form of the verb in Greek, prognosis, or “foreknowledge”. It is the concept of a very deliberate choice. The elect are the sinners who God has predestined to respond to the Gospel. Each and every person born is born as a sinner. Completely dead in our sins. A dead man cannot choose to be alive - nor can a spiritually dead man choose to be reborn in Christ. Our sin separates us from God. Our sin places us at enmity against God, it is an act of treason. God is a righteous and just judge, and He has declared all of us sinners as guilty of this treason against His Holy Name. Our punishment is a tormented eternity in Hell, separated from God. Christ’s sacrifice on the cross is the only possible payment worthy to pay the fine for our crime. He paid the debt owed. By God’s grace, we can have saving faith to repent of our sins and turn to Christ, trusting Him for our salvation. RC Sproul said, “Calvinism does not teach and never has taught that God bring people kicking and screaming into the Kingdom or has ever excluded anyone who wanted to be there. Remember that the cardinal point of the Reformed doctrine of predestination rests on the biblical teaching of man’s spiritual death. Natural man does not want Christ. He will only want Christ if God plants a desire for Christ in his heart. Once that desire is planted, those who come to Christ do not come kicking and screaming against their wills. They come because they want to come. They now desire Jesus. They rush to the Savior. The whole point of irresistible grace is that rebirth quickens someone to spiritual life in such a way that Jesus is now seen in His irresistible sweetness. Jesus is irresistible to those who have been made alive to the things of God. Every soul whose heart beats with the life of God within it longs for the living Christ. All whom the Father gives to Christ come to Christ (John 6:37).”
I was thinking about the verse of God wanting all people to be saved. I came across this video. It explained to me, that God wants all people to be saved. So, nowI know the chapter and verses that explains that. Thank you Yeshua.
Faith comes by hearing and hearing the word of God! So yes then your faith is dependent upon your response to the gospel and feeding upon the word of God! Scripture says that God has dealt to each man a measure of faith, what we do with it from there is up to us
@@briancufishin24 Romans 3:9-11 Sir we don’t. What about cain and Able ? Able was not love by God before he was in the womb ? This is scripture God choose who to have mercy is not of our own will if you say we choose God is wrong how can somebody dead to sin seek righteousness if they can’t acknowledge their stance
If,we are saved from before the foundation of the world,EPHESIANS 1:4, Then GOD knew who would be saved and who would reject HIM before it actually happened. The bible says Ezekial 33:11,”I TAKE NO PLEASURE IN THE DEATH OF THE WICKED”,so what it boils down to is GOD knows the future of each one of us.we choose our own path. It’s not that GOD condemns us,we condemn ourselves.
That's a contradiction. If "GOD knows the future of each one of us" then it doesn't matter what we decide to do; it will always be what god predicted. We don't condemn ourselves, we just execute the plan god has for each of us.
@Piesho Nais If one night you’re working late and your friend calls you and spoils the ending of a basketball game, saying the Lakers won, then when you get home you decide to watch the game even when you know how it ends: does that mean you’re controlling every player on the field, do they not have free will anymore? Same thing goes for us and God.
@@delideluca7425 You are talking about witnessing the repetition of an event. Do these players have free will to execute their plays in the real-time game? That's when I think they don't according to determinism theory.
@@nananana8053 "knowing is not predicting" Of course it is. We predict outputs base on what we know about the inputs. It happens everywhere, from sports and weather to logic and religious claims.
Amen. The Bible says that God does not desire the death of a sinner (Peter 3:9) but that all should come to repentance. The early church believed and knew this to be truth from the beginning. Only subsequent breaks have caused this heresy to resurface.
I think the question would have been better worded as “Why did Christ purpose some not to believe?”. The word “want” is a bit vague and allows for levels of desire. For example: if God wanted men to have free will yet also wanted all men to be saved, one of His desires had to be stronger than the other for Him to act in the way He did. (I’m neither affirming nor denying free will, just using it as an example).
@@craigjoyner9857 You clearly don't like the sovereignty of God but prefer to believe that Man is sovereign. Who makes one to differ from another? Did we create ourselves?
@@pauljohn1979 You clearly don't believe God is capable of giving man the freedom to choose without compromising His own sovereignty. The TRUE God is more than capable. The purpose of this current creation is to give the opportunity for ALL of mankind the opportunity of becoming part of the new creation as described at the end of Revelation. Sadly many will resist that opportunity. Others will miss out through succumbing to false doctrines, "because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved."
I am SO great full to hear the words of TRUTH from Pastor John. Never before have I heard The Word go into such details about things that not all churches talk about. This was deep, interesting not to mention how informative this is. It makes so much sense of GOD, The Bible, life & people's ways & thought processes. This is great & sheds a lot of light on things, bc it reminds me of GOD and the phahoah who's heart was hardened by TMH --- he got what he deserved bc he was truly Evil towards the Israelites. It all makes great sense how TMH thinks & deals with mankind bc basically HE knows Everyone's heart. And why should HE bestow GOOD things to the Ungrateful & waste HIS gifts? Thanks for this session & channel. GOD Bless you.
@gloriavalentine8173 Just a word of warning in regards to John Piper. I suggest you look into Calvinism and its heresy teaching . John Piper is a 5 point tulip Calvinist ...You mention "deserves", as if to say some deserve salvation and some damnation. NONE of us deserves salvation. We all are wretches yet even while we were sinners God, rich in mercy, opened our eyes and gave us us the grace , by faith, to believe in Jesus ..I highly suggest you look into Calvinism and why it is NOT biblical at all. Lots of videos on youtube about it...
Yes, but absolutely no. It is an utter miracle. No-one can truly understand how it (salvation) reached into our empty hearts and muted ears, that we have come to know Christ crucified. My God! may we fall on our knees every waking breathe and cry out to Him in glory for having had such mercy on us.
Matthew 6:24 Kjv No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
This "jesus of NAZARETH", NAZARETH people, NOT Bethlehem, WAS NOT Who they Crucified for the sins of man... HERE is The REAL MESSIAH, Who they REALLY Crucified for the sins of man Yad He Vav He is what Moses wrote (Dead Sea Scrolls Exodus 3), not "I Am" OR "God" Yad = Hand He = Breath Vav = Nail He = Breath Yad He, which forms The Creators Name YaH, (Hand Breath), as YaH's Hand Forms/Creates and His Breath brings forth life (Adam) Vav He (Nail Breath), YaH's Sacrifice of Crucifixion, for those who call YaH Savior, His Breath brings forth life (Salvation) YaH arrives via the Tent of Meeting (Exodus 33:7:11), the exact same way YaH arrived to Joseph NOT through childbirth. YaH was NOT Crucified on a "cross", but according to Hebrew law (Deuteronomy 21), to be Hung on an Almond Tree for Blasphemy as the Messiah claimed He was YaH. He was YaH Isaiah 42:8 "I am YaH; that is my name! I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols. Isaiah 43:11 I, I am YAH, and there is no other Savior but Me. Isaiah 45:5 I am YaH, and there is none else.
@@brendonburdett7015 The 4 Gospels are only a very small content of the whole Bible. There are some 30 to 40 thousand opinions/divisions of what the "Good news of the KINGDOM" is. (According to Google). People want everlasting life, yes, but among various reasons most dont want to be footstep followers of Jesus aka 1 Pet. 2:21. If God through Jesus judges people wont serve him , or do his will they will "perish". John 3:16. So as not be simplistic at least 40% of the worlds population know nothing about God and his word, how they will be judged may well be Him reading hearts as he did with Sodom, and the Ninevites initially. We will have to wait and see how that pans out, but to do that we must be among those "chosen" to survive the coming judgment.
John 6:Rejected by His Own 43 Jesus therefore answered and said to them, “Do not murmur among yourselves. 44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me. John 14:Jesus Promises Another Helper 15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever- 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. John 16:The Work of the Holy Spirit 13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. 1 John 2: Let Truth Abide in You 26 These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. 27 But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him. Romans 9:Israel’s Rejection and God’s Justice 14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! 15 For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.” 16 So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.” 18 Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens. 19 You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?” 20 But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” 21 Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? 22 What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory John 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, 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. Matthew 22:14 “For many are called, but few are chosen.” Mark 4:20 But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.” Acts 17:11 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. 12 Therefore many of them believed, and also not a few of the Greeks, prominent women as well as men. Romans 10:16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?” 17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. 1 Timothy 3: The Great Mystery 16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory. Titus 2:Trained by Saving Grace13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ
If God has given us free will it’s our choice to seek God or not . Life style choices . We all have them . I choose to seek and find the maker of everything .
I pray that all the people I love, come to Jesus and try my best to give them invitation and to teach them. I can't save everyone, but I can give my heart a prayers to God and he will guide me.
I’ve always thought that not only grace but faith is a gift from God and you reinforced my thinking. I believe Ephesians 2:8-9 Reinforces this as well in that everything comes from God 100% we contribute nothing. Otherwise we would think that God owes us… Which unfortunately too many religions including (false)Christianity promotes. That said, it is by God‘s wonderful grace that he allows one more day for us to share the gospel so that another soul can come and enter through the narrow gate! Christ’s love from the Suwannee 😎✝️❤️
The grammar of Ephesians 2:8 does not support the idea that faith is the gift referred to. Instead, the act of being saved is the gift that is referenced.
The response from Pastor John seems to involve a lot of theological contortions in order to maintain Calvinistic principles. God is outside time. He knows the beginning and the end, and, accordingly, who will be saved and who will not. Man, within time, has for his part free will to choose to repent or not repent. That said, sin, particularly vanity and pride, leavened with time, hardens hearts and dulls sight, thus making true repentance difficult. From the scriptures, I think man must choose, for else why is the message preached? Why John 3:16-17? Once the decision is made by man to have a contrite heart, humble himself, and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, God forgives. The thief on the cross is an excellent example of this. Man's free will to choose has nothing to do with God's sovereignty -- God is Sovereign and knows the end from the beginning. It has to do with free will and the paradox of free will for a man being a creature within time seeking to commune with a God outside of it. The above has nothing to do with Arminianism, which Calvinists love to kick out as the either/or proposition if one does not subscribe to Calvinist principles. For example, if one is truly saved, salvation is eternal. One who is saved does not live in perpetual fear of losing one's salvation.
No one seeks God. The Light came into the world but men love darkness. All who sin are slaves to sin. We love Him because He first loves us. Jesus' sheep hear His voice. Adoption is decided by the parent, not the child. Being born again is not of the will of the flesh or the will of man. Repentance is granted. Faith is a gift. Free will has to be defined. A starving lion is free to eat straw to stay alive but he won't because it's not in it's nature. A sinner is free to choose salvation but he never will because it's not in his nature. Natural man is poor, blind, pitiful, and naked and helpless and hopeless outside of God's grace. We are by nature objects if God's wrath. Those He foreknew, He predestined, called, justified, glorified. His children were CHOSEN in Him before the foundation of the world. Who will get the glory for this? The LORD!!!
James Jorgensen I totally agree with your post. We humans are totally depraved and by default, hell bound. It is God’s right who’s going to be saved or lost not our “free will” which is a big lie. You can’t have it both ways that God is sovereign and man have free will. For those believers, God gave us the faith we need to get saved. A lot of people are having issues with this because they claim to have free will. Those “whosoever” verses are invitational only and not be taken as basis of free will.
@@edijares1543 and I agree with you. Not because I like you or think you are clever. I agree because that's what the bible teaches!! See you in heaven Ed!!
Stephen Clay Hi. I don't think the pastor in this video is a believer of eternal security . I was for a long time, then was not, now again and for good have no fear of losing my salvation. Thats the short version!! You have an excellent way with words. Do you pastor a church?
No sir. Nowhere in the bible is man said to have "free will". Left to himself, man will always choose wrong. God has to change your heart to love Him and when He does, you will love Him. Read Romans chapter 9.
@Daniel Storm So the good news gospel says that God has forgiven and removed sin for the whole world with one blood sacrifice through Christ...He is not mindful of Sin, yet so many Churchs and Christians are...continually telling people to ask God to forgive them, when they are already forgiven...(dead work as Paul would say)...continually trampling the blood of Christ in disregard that blood must flow for the forgiveness of sins and not just a mere "forgive me Lord for I have sinned".
John 3:16. 1Timothy 2:4. 2 Peter 3:9. God wants everybody to be saved, but He allows free will to choose. Did Adam and Eve not have a choice? In order to hang on to flawed theology, you end up making God the author of evil and not a God of love.
Not true. Since the fall, humans (are spiritually dead) no longer have the ability to choose God. God must intercede & regenerate our heart (as he did with Lazuras). Dead men don't repent. You were born spiritually dead... If you've decided to follow Christ, you are only able to do so because God has regenerated your heart. Salvation is all about what God did for you... Not anything that you choose to do.
@@hesneyk1 Not true. Regeneration follows repentance on the part of Man. Read John 3:16. Read the Great Commission in the relevant Gospels. The unsaved are blind; when the decision to believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior is made, they are saved and then see.
@@hesneyk1 To be spiritually dead means to not have the Holy Spirit living in us. It doesn't mean we cannot make a conscious choice. Jesus said, "You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you REFUSE to come to me to have life (John 5:39-40)." Refuse means "unwilling to accept." This means they make a choice not to accept God's call for them to be saved. It doesn't get any simpler than this. th-cam.com/video/3osnuQ69bg8/w-d-xo.html
It reminds me of the story of the Tower of Babel He doesn’t want ppl to learn the kingdom and be able to go places they have not earned or they are not supposed to be This is why what Christians say to the carnal ppl sounds like babel, they don’t understand the secret of grace and the kingdom They will not say the kingdom is here or the kingdom is there All the while the kingdom is here right in front them in our spirits ❤🙏🏽🎚️
I find this answer quite unconvincing. John Piper says that free will to choose salvation is a philosophical presupposition and is not scriptural. But there are many Bible passages that give the impression that people have free will of this kind. For example, in Isa 45:22 God says: 'Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth.' This passage seems to imply that God is not putting any barrier in the way of people coming to him. And there are many other passages that give a similar impression. And we must remember that language works by giving impressions and implications as much as it does by stating things explicitly. If Piper is right, then Isa 45:22 seems very misleading, and, of course, it isn't misleading. It is true that God chooses who is saved in a deep and meaningful sense, but I don't think this has to rule out free will.
@@Mark-um5hc Romans doesn't teach that there are any people seeking Him. In fact He states that there is not a single person on earth, throughout all of history, who seeks after Him.
@A.R That is a bit of a different issue from the point I was making. The point I was making is that there are many passages which give the impression that people do have free will whether to choose Christ or not. And when Piper says that those blinded by God had already made their choice, he believes that the already-made choice could not possibly have been different from what it was. Piper doesn't believe that there is any stage in human experience where people have a genuine ability to choose between the options of accepting or rejecting the ways of God. I find that rather unconvincing. To my mind, there are many biblical passages that need to be given unnatural interpretations to make that theology fit.
@@carljones8334 You are right, of course, that Romans teaches that no one seeks God. But, importantly, that is talking about people 'in the natural', without the input of God's grace. But when God's grace is brought into the picture, there are different ways of understanding things: (1) God's saving grace is given only to those whom he unilaterally decides to make Christians. Or (2) God's grace awakens and enables people generally to have an ability to choose between the options of accepting or rejecting Christ. The teaching of Romans that no one seeks God doesn't tell us whether (1) or (2) is correct.
This is something that I have a hard time accepting if I’m honest. I am not Calvinist because of it. To me this theology of no free will ignores a lot of scripture. Salvation being chosen for the elect and open to no one else does not align with several passages and themes in the Bible. God’s promise to Abraham was to bless him and restore the nations through him. This was shortly after the Tower of Babel and the nations were wicked and yet God promised to restore them. In John 3:16 Jesus says “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life”, and in John 3:17 he also says “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” I am not speaking of universalism, merely that God wants all people to turn to him. I do not understand a textual and theological perspective where God creates a world, let’s it fall, and then predetermines which people he will save. He wants all nations to turn back to him. All people were made in the image of God, not just some. Maybe I don’t know what I’m talking about, and if that’s the case then please forgive me. The doctrine of Calvinism just seems to be adding a flavor to scripture that I don’t see being there.
The Righteousness of God In Christ Jesus @Kyle, this guy is absolutely correct. Don’t let these Calvinistic teachers twist gods word into a complicated perversion. Scripture is clear that he desires none to perish :)
Very well said. To complete the original question I would add this. 1 Tim 2:4 can be better understood if read as follows: “…who desires all to be saved [also] to come to the knowledge of the truth”. The word “and”, can and is, traslated “also”. It is in the very next verse, 2:5 (NASB). Why does this help? God desires “…all to be saved…”, is a reference to the elect, only. In other words, all those “..to be saved…”, will be saved (God’s elect). These can only do so by "coming to a knowledge of the truth”. This understanding strips man of any so called, free will, and exalts God the sovereignty due Him. Re-read this verse in this light VERY carfully, it now aligns perfectly with Acts 13:48 etc. Thank you, pastor John.
Sometimes it's the way we understand language today that causes a struggle with understanding Scripture... My pastor explains it like this: It's not that God so much hardened his hard directly (God gave him.many chances), but what God was doing caused the hardness in Pharoah's heart only because he was already against God in the first place. It's that it caused Pharoah to further reject God.
And it was so perfectly just. Everything that Pharaoh had done to the very people that had saved Egypt from certain painful death in seven years of famine was visited back on him. And the plagues were even merciful, and not as harsh a punishment as it could have been. What a mighty, righteous, and just God we serve in our Lord Jesus Christ!
Agreed Michael. his ideas are a grabbing at straws to claim an answer. There are other verses that show He has a DESIRE that no one be destroyed. Eg 2 Peter 3:9. 0r saved. Mat. 1:21. As shown at Mat. 7:13--23 people are walking 2 "roads" one most are on going to "destruction" and few on that leading to "life". Therein we see the separation is about who does "the will of God" and those who dont/ didnt. In order to CHOOSE to do that will faith is required. In turn faith is gained by understanding Jesus' illustrations and prophecy, some of which are quite deep.The Greek word "epignosis" (accurate knowledge) is used 19 times as needed, eg Rom 10:2.. Most Bibles sadly only translate that word as "knowledge". People are taught that our salvation is the most important thing in the Bible. Not so. It is the vindication of his Name that has been sullied by people in general. EG The nation of ancient Israel. Jer 23:27, Mal. 2:1,2. So to preserve that NAME his people must strive to do His will once learned. John 17:3, Luke 13:24. And to maintain that course to the end of their life or to the end of this era. Mat. 10:22, 24:13. So we who have had the accurate good news declared to us and make sustained effort to do his will will be saved, those who choose to ignore it will perish. John 3:16 Of course we have a choice just as Adam had.
You are. The bible teaches man is on bondage to sin and spiritually dead. The only freedom he has is to seek sin and rebellion. No one seeks after righteousness
God wants everyone to be saved. The scriptures say he has given EVERYMAN a measure of faith. It's up to every man weather they chose to except Christ or not. Jesus wanted the rich young ruler saved however the ruler chose to love money instead. Scriptures says he takes no delight In the death of the wicked.
No... the Bible teaches that ALL MEN are born spiritually DEAD and are part of Satan's "Kingdom"... yes they have "free will" but, because of our sin nature, our "free will" is to always SIN. The Bible is clear.... NO MAN seeks God, no, not even one [Rom 3"\:10-12] That is why God had to "chose" or "elect" who HE would saved, based ONLY on His Good Pleasure (not anything they would do) from before the foundation of the world... does ANY of this "ring a bell for you?) www.5thKingdomofHeaven.com ---
Christ desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth 1 Timothy 2:3-4 and not willing that any should perish but come to repentance 2 Peter 3:9. God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked and wants wicked men to repent and live Ezekiel 18:23,32 and 33:11. For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. John 3:16-17 And this is His commandment, that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as He gave us commandment 1 John 3:23 I think Scripture makes God’s desire for all men to be saved and to believe in Jesus quite clear. We also know that God shows mercy to whom he wills and doesn’t show mercy to whom he wills Romans 9:15. This makes sense because we know that from Romans 1:28 that God will give people over to a debased mind to fulfill the lusts of the flesh (ex. Pharaoh). God is too loving to force us into a relationship we don’t desire, if love is forced upon anyone, that is not real love. Each time one rejects God’s calling and the rejects the conviction of the Holy Spirit, that person heart is hardened. There seems to be a line for every single person, and once someone has crossed that line(blaspheming the Holy Spirit) by hardening their heart to the point of no return (which only God can determine someone has crossed that line) God is loving enough to not force that person into a relationship with Him, and will give them over to their wickedness. I don’t believe for a second that God wants some and not others to be saved, I believe He wants everyone to be saved because He is all-loving. If He offers hope to only some and not others, although He would still be perfectly just, I don’t believe He can be all-loving.
The next generation of Christians began to question why Jesus had not returned yet and people were asking where is Jesus, everybody is passing away but Jesus has not returned. Christian scribes addressed this questioning in a later letter made to the churches the Lord is not slow about his promise as some think of slowness but is patient with you not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance, 2 Peter 3:9 Unfortunately this excuse that was shoveled out to the first century church..
GOD'S will is that all would believe and the offer goes out to everyone. And that is it. Just believe the gospel guys. put your trust in Jesus he died for everyone
Andrew Wommack teaches that the number one destructive teaching in the churches is the soveregnity of God. God is sovereign God, but He is NOT a dictative sovereign. God that controls people and their minds and free will is a God of control, and we know that a self ambition is a work of the flesh (Gal 5:19)
This is a question as old as time, debated for centuries.. If God alone is choosing who believes and who doesn't, the darkness in you will reinforce the notion of how you dont want anyone to be God's puppet and how unjust that is! If man alone is choosing who believes and who doesn't, the darkness in you will reinforce the notion of how unjust that is to the unreached and cause you to question His authority over the events of the earth! My point is, unless your Moses, and God has spoken to you directly.. then you don't truly know the answer to this question do you? Sure, we can pick our favorite scriptures of the day to back up our view while those who disagree can find scriptures to back up their opposing view, just like with any paradox found in scriptures.. Meanwhile, those who ask or listen PATIENTLY to either side for an unshakeable answer are not always convinced by either side HISTORICALLY. Look, paradoxes have confounded many a believer, but they dont confound your Creator. The darkness in you will whisper temptations and fears as old as time to doubt God's Word whenever your confronted with a paradox. Don't fall for it or be discouraged (like i once did). Also, dont buy in to a theory on either side of the discussion because a teacher has a "leaning", for that would be reckless and potentially undermine the trusting faith you have that pleases Jesus.. Rather, be thankful for what He has revealed as much as for what He has hidden. Reread that last sentence. Trust His wisdom, trust His intentions, trust the Father who sent His innocent Son to atone for your sins. You know He loves you.. Trust Him with this profound question and all your other burdens. See that He wont reward your faith in Him somehow.
@MATTHEW PRIDDY - Amen brother, very nicely put. Exactly how God's sovereignty interacts with mankind's free will is a mystery to us, and always will be in this current age. I think the Lord purposefully left certain issues like this without an exact or definitive explanation at least partly for the sake our learning to trust in Him and in His character, and how He is merciful; He is gracious; He is loving; He is righteous; He is holy; He is long-suffering; He is just; He is all-knowing; He in infinitely wise; He is good; He is a God who became a Man and was tempted in all respects like us, yet without sin, so that He can even be touched with the feeling of our own weaknesses (Heb 4:15); He is a God who sent His only begotten Son to die at the hands of His very own creation and be righteously judged in our place in order to redeem us (rebellious sinners) to Himself and bring us back into oneness with Him for His eternal purpose. (and so on) If all we knew about Him was what we have recorded in the four Gospels, that would be more than sufficient to be able to trust in His character, yet we can know so much more about Him and His ways by reading and praying over all of scripture, as well as by putting our faith and trust into Him during our own lives'. I think a good example of learning to trust in the Lord and be at peace with His ways is when Abraham interceded on behalf of Sodom and Gomorrah, and how he appealed to the Lord's righteousness when he asked Him to consider there being potentially 50 righteous people in the city which He was about to judge and destroy. Abraham then asked Him to consider there being 40 righteous people, the 30, then 20, and finally 10. And as we know, the Lord said that He would not destroy those cities for the sake of 10 righteous people dwelling within them. So why didn't Abraham keep going from 10, 9, 8, 7 .... all the way down to 1? I believe it's because he was satisfied with being able to trust in the Lord's character, and that He is indeed both righteous _and_ merciful, and so he didn't feel the need to keep going. The Lord may have not given us the clear answer to everything we _want_ to know, but He surely has given us more than enough for what we _need_ to know to be able to put our faith and trust in Him and His often mysterious ways.
J Jenkins, Agree with you.. But I think this verse may have been translated in error since this is the only verse that says, God desires all to be saved... Most verses say that God saves the Elect only....
reynaldo david I don’t correct it, but some how you think you can. Funny you only have questions and no answers. Usually what happens when you jump out in the deep and can’t swim back
Pastor John refutes the Arminianism argument, amen brother and what great joy that by the grace of God we are chosen, for we could not have saved ourselves. We could not, being dead, have seen and decided to choose Him.
I do believe that God/Christ would want ALL to BELIEVE so that ALL might be SAVED... that is the main GOAL and PURPOSE of why God sent the WORD (Son of God) to this world... It was Satan who does not want ALL humans to be saved, and that is why Satan will do anything to twist and bend the WORD OF GOD (Scriptures) and do miracles, apparitions, and great wonders to deceive even the Elect... so that many could HEAR but could not LISTEN (understand/comprehend), and LOOK but could not SEE (perceive the Biblical Truth w/o compromise)... Amen
Bizarre teaching. Having grown up in Calvinism and having now moved away from it, more and more it becomes clear that it is a twisting of the Bible. If God *could* save all but chooses not to, He is not good. He could not say He loves all. And as Dave Hunt points out, that’s what Calvinism ends up teaching: God does not love all; is not kind to all. Calvinism flat out rejects the verses that put all of predestination in the light of God’s open call to all to accept His repentance/faith/forgiveness as a free gift. On the contrary, God does desire that all be saved, but just as the Pharisees and experts in the law “rejected God’s will for them” Luke 7:30, so too do people reject the pleading of the Holy Spirit to accept Jesus. Rejecting Him then hardens their heart, and once man has hardened beyond the point of turning, the message and urging of the Holy Spirit is closed to them. This is not a fake simulation game. If God’s *selection* is what saves then Jesus did not have to die. God could have just chosen who to save. That’s in effect what saves in Calvinism. This makes a mockery of the clear open call that the Bible extends to everyone. It isn’t fake. It isn’t a simulation. And free will is the *practical* application from the Bible anyway! Not one person apart from perhaps Paul gets saved by being dragged to it apart from having to make a choice. And that choice for many involves years of temptation to deny Christ and follow their own desires, some having known the truth and having rejected it. There is a definite battle of the will and each person must make that *choice* to bow down and follow Jesus or to reject Him…! This is the human experience. We do not experience mere election. We have free will and confronted with the gospel, we must choose this day whom we will serve…!
I love these questions to think about. I always go back to God is not confused about what is perfect and what is right. We get it wrong on a daily basis. At the end it will all be made right. "Endure to the end". God bless you guys.
Good for you @Desiring God. You were chosen, it's a pity that some of us weren't and we have no choice in the matter. Looks like salvation is only for you and rest of us can do nothing about it.
I don't agree with John Piper here. I believe that Christ died for ALL elect and non-elect. And that we have free will in choosing God and that God doesn't prevent us from knowing Him.
Matt 16:18 Kjv And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
I agree with Pastor John. God is almighty, and there is nothing He cannot do if he wills. If He plans to save a particular person, the person will be saved no matter what. If someone is not saved, it has to mean that God did not plan or will to save that person. I don’t think we are capable of fully understand “why” God does not save all people, but that does not change the fact that God’s will will be done 100%.
I think your right. Satan is a god. He’s the god who rules the earth and many Christians are believing in the devil thinking it’s god and spreading hate and injustice. Telling the innocent that they will go to hell if they cannot endure Pain that no one could. God doesn’t pick favorites like this. Satan picks favorites.
I trust God simply because He would send His only begotten son to die on the cross for me, a sinner just to take a way my sin. If he who would die for me is not trustworthy, if He who want to wash away my sin so badly that He could only sacrifice His only son for me is not trustworthy, I don’t know whoelse is more trustworthy then.
Do you think there is a spiritual message in that? If you cover up the tiny problems with the bigger blessings you still are at some level bothered by the little things. Give up all the little insignificant worries to God in Jesus's name.
I carry a heavy burden for family and friends who are lost and blind but do not seek God. My words do absolutely nothing. Only God's divine intervention can open the eyes of the blind, like He did with me. Pray for people you know, that God may glorify himself in their lives because a prophet has no honor in his own house.
Thank you for sharing this! I encourage you to not carry the burden on yourself but give it to God to hold, tell Him about it, He will surely help you! Our Loving Father
Kaboom my Family has just about disowned me
They do not want to hear as if they’re hearts have been hardened
I understand
GOD WILLING HE touches they’re hearts
Kaboom Be encouraged as you share the good news to family or friends, you are sowing seeds. That is not nothing. Remember, God's word doesnt return back to Him void. Family is the hardest to reach. You'll do better with strangers they dont know your past.
Kaboom Be encouraged that your words in sharing the gospel are seeds being sown. So they are doing more than you "see"..It is the Father that draws us to Jesus..In God's time
Because you can't just shove your beliefs and what you've obtained wisdom in people's faces. This is most likely the main error in Christians because it's the "truth". That will cause conflict and that will not solve anything. Try give them hope as what God gives hope to His people. Try to understand why they chose that path, pray for them and be patient. In time, they might awoken
I wept for joy listening to this on my way to work. I'm so grateful that God has given me ears to hear and eyes to see and a new heart of flesh, of which I am so undeserving.
The lot is cast into the lap, But its every decision is from the Lord.
Proverbs 16:33
Amen Justin
I love reading a post, with humbleness and being greatful. May God bless you.
I weep for my salvation but also carry a heavy burden for family and friends who are lost and blind but do not seek Him. My words do absolutely nothing. Only God's divine intervention can open the eyes of the blind, like He did with me. Pray for people you know that God may glorify himself in their lives because a prophet has no honor in his own house.
@@justinthrift9603 Wouldn't you be MORE grateful if God gave EVERYONE those open eyes and ears?
Why wouldn't you?
Jewish who accepted Jesus here ♥️ Amen
You're blessed my sister!
@@riverpc5755 God bless you 🥰
Me too sister:)
So than not jewish.... Christian now. Right?
@@andrewtaylor1737 Jewish is also an ethnicity.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whoever believes in him would have eternal life”.
No one can come to the Father unless the Spirit draws him.
@The Righteousness of God In Christ Jesus no denying John 3:16, just understand that it is a description not a prescription 😉. John 3 is about why Nicodemus is not a believer and can't become one. No one can come to me unless the father draws him, is the same author , same book, and same subject.
@The Righteousness of God In Christ Jesus agreed, it is a REQUIREMENT!!! This video is in Error!!!!
@The Righteousness of God In Christ Jesus then why is it when Nicodemus asks "what must I do?", Jesus replies you must be born again? Nicodemus clearly realized he plays no role in this birth because he asks how dose one crawl into his mother's womb a second time?. Your view clearly goes against scripture at Evey turn.
J Pep whom did the Father draw to Jesus? Jesus said my sheep hear my voice, who are those sheep? Those who already had a relationship with the father. John 6:45 “It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me-” that’s why Jesus said, those who know the father come to me. Why didn’t some Jews know him? Eg the Pharisees, why? Cause they didn’t know the father and have a relationship with him through faith.
The ways of the Father are so deep that just when you think your walk with him is complete and you feel satisfied in your position in the Kingdom, you see some more light shed on his majestic being that makes your heart leap for Joy and even though we feel smaller in his presence we feel more secure and loved at the same time! Amen and let us give thanks that he is whom that he is and he is and he sends the Holy Spirit as a comforter. Thank you Father for thinking it, Thank you Lord Jesus for doing it and thank you Holy Spirit for keeping it going just for us! Salvation!
Amen
I talked to my mom about god and she was just like “oh yea I think i’m gonna burn in hell” and she claims she’s saved because she was baptized please pray for her! also please pray for me, i’m having a hard time with lust love you all amen
its been a year, has she been better? i will pray for her
how has it been? I'm hoping you've persevered even if things haven't changed. I'm praying for you!
Lord JESUS CHRIST ✝️ help and guide them Amen
Anyone can be baptized doesn’t mean they’re saved even atheists were baptized
Respect and devotion to our Lord, Jesus Christ is helpful.
Lord Almighty, the one true God, he knows your heart. Cleanse your heart by reaching out to God daily, respecting and loving Him for all His goodness.
The god of this world is very different from God, the Almighty. god and God are two totally different entities. Until one can understand and distinguish between the two, they will not see.
I am certain than GOD chose me. I’m 42 years old since I was child I’ve always been drawn to God, since I can remember I’ve always known that God exists, but when I turned 18 years old that’s when I accepted Jesus as my savior, He’s been walking with me ever since. Being a Christian is not easy and it can be lonely at times and at times a bumpy ride too, but Jesus is faithful and He will never let you go, I love Jesus so much 🕊️
same with me. I can remember clearly when i was about 3 or 4 y.o, i believed in God when my mom taught me a short meal prayer, but at that time my mom didn't say in Jesus name though we are christian, i think my mom lack of knowledge .
Not only that when i was about 5, i remember suddenly i was curious who created my parents, my grandparents, and great great great grandparents is.Idk why would i think of it in such young age. Then when i was at sunday school, my sunday school teacher taught us about creation and i believed. If i remember all of this, i am so grateful, i never feel Him is only imagination or a story telling. Because my my grandma was a devouted christian. She would tell me about hell, that made me really deeply believe that there is God
It seems to me after 27 years on my journey with the Lord there are things this side of heaven that will remain a mystery. We can look at this topic, try to see what it is that God is saying in scripture, but we can come away with different views. We do know that a partial blindness comes upon the Jewish people but we are seeing more Jewish people come to faith in Yeshua today . That tells us that the fullness of the Gentile nations prophesied about is coming to fruition. We are close , very close to the end of the age and the return of Jesus..
Andrew Corbell I struggle with the same issues you do and so on... How can God place us in a fallen world, without a choice of our very existence or even our salvation, while inheriting the distant sins of our long gone ancestors, and still be a loving God? I struggle with the idea of God being a cosmic puppet master, but I’m pretty sure every Christian has these doubts. Despite these ideas, just cling to assurance in Christ. For god knows the bigger picture, we dont
@@andrewcorbell7216 Like so many of us who have walked a life of faith a long time these are things to ponder. But we have to remember just as scripture tells us, God is good, not evil. There is no darkness in Him. Because of sin the devil was given permission to be the prince of the air , and the world literally became broken. The tree of the knowledge of good & evil is not really a contradiction..God does not tempt us, but does test us. To see if our faith is genuine and to help us to grow and develop...Why did all these things happen in the order they did? Who knows exactly. But He's given us faith to believe because of the testimonies of the gospel and Jesus is the author of that faith. Child like faith, keeping our eyes on Him is a daily thing, a work of discipline. The world is full of evil and distractions and more so today. Ultimately God will get the glory for saving us, reconciling us back to the Father, ridding the earth of evil and sin and make things new. God is in the redemptive business . You mention your biggest fear is Him not knowing you. I strongly encourage you to google all scriptures concerning faith, permanent salvation, and especially read all of John 3, 6, 10. These chapters deal with those who believe will never perish, knowing the Good Shepherds voice, and having a peace of mind that a believer is in the hand of the Father and nothing can snatch them out. Jesus tells us His desire is to give us rest in our relationship with Him. If you struggle with thinking He doesnt know you, I can assure you , if you have been born again He knows you. I would suggest spending more time reading His word, and worship in quiet time. Read Jeremiah 33:3..It changed my life forever
@@andrewcorbell7216 Excuse me but I was curious about your comment saying that the bible says the Spirit of God will not dwell in us. I hope you will allow me to share some valuable truths to help you ..If you have a pastor teaching that, my advice is to run to the nearest door and dont look back. Let me show exactly what the bible says about the Holy Spirit. These are but a few places..
1 Corinthians 3:16 "Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?"
Romans 8:11 "But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you."
Romans 8:9 "However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him."
Galatians 4:6 "Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”
Ephesians 1:13-14 "In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory"
Andrew I pray the Father touch your heart, open His word , His love to you to give the faith you need to enjoy your relationship with Him. Our faith is not IN anything in this world. It sounds to me very much like your under spiritual attack by satan. Pray according to Jeremiah 33:3..seek God with all your heart..use your authority over demons to rebuke out loud in Jesus' name. If you havent been taught how, there are prayers on youtube with warfare praying over you..Get free , so you can be free from fear and confusion..God bless you, praying for you
@@andrewcorbell7216 Its always my pleasure to help if and when I can and plz, no apology needed. I'm an old guy and been through lots so I understand.. I have been blessed by many wonderful people sowing into my life. You have the most important thing besides faith. Desire. Let that desire lead you into deeper truths that no man can show you. Only the Holy Spirit. Being good enough? Hmm..Well my thought basically on that is that none of us are good enough. Jesus did it all my friend. Thats why it is called the good news. Its His grace by faith, that makes us right with the Father ..Jesus' righteousness imparted to the believer!! we are blessed with every spiritual blessing we can ever need!!! Man it doesnt get any better in this life. How cool is that? With that being said, we are living in a dangerous time and will probably see more and more demonic activity now..Look at all the riots and lawlessness in the US...Listen I'm online a lot. If I can help you with anything please feel free to ask. I'm retired so I have lots of free time my brother. Nice to hear back from u and God bless you ..
Kim Westwood .in this time it's simple .we hold onto the truth that is Jesus. .that's all we need to do.
This gentile is just GRATEFUL to be saved.
Reading romans 11 is quite amazing.
You only care about your self? what about the billions not chosen? you dont care about them?
Because your a selfish wicked snake
It is a hard topic to understand. But if we placed our Trust in Jesus, then I will Trust that He made the right judgement call in choosing whom the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven be given to and withheld from. I still pray that God reveal to us and give us the knowledge and wisdom to understand what He wants us to understand concerning those texts in Jesus name amen. Godbless brothers and sisters!
"No one is made blind against their will" love that ❤
Mark 1:15
And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
No, because under Calvinism God made them blind for His glory. He decreed and superintends their blindness and their will.
I believe anyone that wants to be saved, Will be saved, when they're ready to submit their will to the will of God and seek him with their whole heart. Matthew 12-20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
Bible speaks quite a bit on the Lord hardening people. If we we believe all will be saved we're in a bad spot. That's worldly and not Godly.
He does speak of all coming to the truth but that not all will come to it hence there's a hell. If all were to be saved he'll would have not existed.
Jesus speaks about on this Himself.
Do you not know or understand that many will never see, they can't see.
Doesn't mean we should not continue in our witnessing.
Not all Jews will be children of the promise. Do you not know this. Same with all.
I'd like to see you say it to a blind child
I wasn’t raised in a Christian family , or raised
in a Christian environment /association , but
associated with many people growing up . By
my late 20s I was living a self destructive
life as were many in a surfing community ,
North shore , Hawaii , where you could find
all the worldly pleasures . I felt I’d never
recover from bad habits mixed with good ,
So , ok bad . But I was self employed and
some customers were Christians including
a wife of a pastor that was the nicest lady
of God . All my Christian customers were
my favorite customers . All and all , I started
to call on Lord Jesus and reading the Bible
and in time I found out it was all true , there
Is a living God that created us and everything
else that was created . And what I found that
what Lord Jesus said gave me hope , I can
recover from self destruction ! So now I follow
Lord Jesus . Families not too happy about
it but it’s worth it , believing the truth .
Raised and surrounded by unbelievers ,
yet I turned to Father God and He pointed
to his Son , Lord Jesus Christ my redeemer ,
my Savior . Our God . Peace and God Bless .
God bless you brother! Keep seeking after the Lord.
I've just listened through this 4 or 5 times because it raised a very good question and I noticed a blind spot in my comprehension. I noticed that I didn't agree with the points made initially, and so rather than dismiss them, I explored them. This has been very fruitful and I give thanks to God for the revelations given through His Word and Holy Spirit.
And what was your revelation?
I have blind spots in my comprehension. Always have. Please grant me the gift Lord❤
@@ninjason57the sovereign will of God is way more powerful and enigmatic than I had initially given credit for.
@@poeticsun645 fr, i used to debate people heavily trying to get the message , the truth deep in there minds that i have received and each time it was always the same rebuttal that passively though not correct silience the message within them, now i see, it was not handed to them that they may see for they have rejected the truth because they accept not the truth, and because the truth has not accepted them. Grace of God is amazing yet its always saddening that many have not this gift to salvation, it hurts all we can do is pray for them
@@leoanim8s838 I hear that, I think that we are called to give the Gospel message but it's only God that will soften hearts. What we say may plant a seed that can bring forth fruit at a later time so we just do our bit as Kingdom ambassadors 😇
This is why hypercalvinism is a dangerous problem in Christianity. At the beginning the answer was said as "Man has no self-determination" and then later says "No one is made blind against their will". So which is it? Is God preventing some to salvation or not? It's a simple Yes or No. It shouldn't take 12 minutes to answer this question. Some other thoughts I have listed if anyone cares to read:
- Regarding Self Determination salvation:
2 Thess 2:10 "They[wicked people] perish because they did not accept the love of the truth and so be saved." (So did God not will hard enough for them to be saved? or did they not choose to accept the truth?)
- Regarding faith: Why would Jesus rebuke so harshly those with little faith and praise the ones who have great faith if it is not somewhat a product of free will (im not arguing that it cannot be gifted but that it is not ONLY gifted)
- Then Piper leaves out the next verse of 2 Timothy 2:26 "Then they may come to their senses and escape the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will." (Showing a combination of God's will and then subsequently mans choice to respond)
- Regarding repentance: If Jesus was aware that repentance is ONLY able to be achieved because God has predetermined some and not others then he would have zero reason to speak about the kingdom of God. He could have lived his life, died for sins and ascended to heaven with nobody in the world knowing who he was. Why would it matter if he revealed himself as the messiah to the disciples? God already determines who's in the kingdom right?
If there are believers struggling with this you're not alone. Please consider listening to Dr. Leighton Flowers on his youtube channel "Soteriology 101". He will clarify this confusion better than I ever could.
Thank you Jesus for my Salvation and for being born again. Praise GOD!!!
Have mercy oh God for all of my sins.
don't throw me away from your love.
Thank you for giving me a heart to repent.
🙏 Praise Jesus God saves
All I want Is salvation. I just want Jesus. I don’t care if I’m poor, depressed, etc . I just want Jesus and to be saved. I know that Jesus is the Truth and the way and the life. I asked God to save me over and over and over again. Why can’t He save me? Lord please, mercy
Hello friend I just want to mention that you shouldn’t seek salvation in and of itself. Seek Jesus because he is wonderful. Then seek salvation so that you can spend eternity with him. But don’t worry and keep praying because it is the Lord himself that will give you the desires and the faith. And one more thing being saved means believing that God is love and that he sent his Son to die for your sins. Don’t doubt whether or not he can save you but believe that he has. 🙏🏿
@@harisonfekadu hello brother! I believe in Christ and I’ve been saved by Him. He paid for everyone of my sins on that cross and He promises to save all those who trust in Him. Thank for the comment. I’ve been growing in my faith the past two years brother. God bless you and Christ is Lord! :)
If you want to know why God hardens some hearts and not others, read the Bible. He will harden those who continue to make themselves His enemy even after hearing His word. He will not harden those who are responding in faith (which we all have the opportunity to do, by the grace of God). When the Word is spoken, respond well. The more we harden ourselves, the more he may harden us. Likewise, those who respond in faith can have their faith grown by God. Be careful! The measure you use when you hear is what is used to add to you. (Mark 4:24) This is how to be good soil. Realize your response upon hearing the Word is up to you, and is the difference between the Word being sown on a path, or in good soil. TAKE HEED WHAT YE HEAR.
Trust the Word of God, not Calvinism.
Yes, God wills for all to be saved, but He will not break our will to do it. He desires our cooperation and communion, for that is the nature of love and God is Love. So He will harden the hearts of the self-hardened by freezing His communication to them. Repentance is the thawing of the heart that God looks for so as to reopen those lines of communication, making the work of grace possible again in that soul.
John Piper, the man talking in this video is a Calvinist. Calvinism is a false doctrine which teaches God has selected some for salvation, others for damnation. God is rich in mercy not desiring for anyone to perish. None of us can know when someone is at a point of having a reprobate mind. What we should be doing is praying daily for the lost to come to faith in Jesus .
@@kimwestwood8840No one can change the will of God no matter what.What He planned, that He will accomplish
@@davidochiengbuoga7165 Th ewill of God according to John Piper, who is Calvinist, is God has selected some for salvation and some for damnation.
But the will of God according to the bible is first in John 3 where it says WHOEVER believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life . Also referencing Jjohn 6: 39 This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. 40 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
@@KristineMarieTxSPI Just following up. Did you listen to the video I sent ?
Seek and you shall find. Don't seek, don't find.
Or seek and don’t find or don’t seek, still find. There are ad nauseam accounts of people who have sought god “with all their heart, souls and mind” and still aren’t convinced that he’s there and people who live their lives in “wretchedness” and have testimony of god intervening and saving them.
Just because you have a verse that states this trite “promise”, doesn’t make it true.
But of course, the only (tiring) thing to come back with is: ...well... you didn’t really do the “special” seeking.
@@ardbegthequestion depends on the person. God has made his presense known in this realm. Its the person that needs to accept it. Cant see God? Thats your problem
@@ardbegthequestion no if you seek you will find. If you didn't find then you didn't look hard enough. You will find God when you seek Him with your whole heart.
@@ardbegthequestion personally God came to me and called me to Him while I was lost, then I sought and found Him.
Caitlin Maynell how do I know when I’ve used my whole heart? Does one continually need to do this much heart to speak/interact with god? I bet not. Plenty of sinning Christians still able to claim this relationship is happening. Yet I can honestly pray a prayer for him to reveal himself in a meaningful way, only to keep getting cosmic crickets.
& How much shitty things in my life does god need to wait for before I am begging for him to be there? Honestly read back this sentiment. It comes across like an abusive relationship. I get this, I was in for 30+ years. But the trite, anecdotal retorts just don’t cut it anymore. I have many loving relationships with people and none are this difficult or require so much mental gymnastics to even just get to “hey look at us, we is in a relationship”...
End of snark.
Oh Father i realize how much blessed i am thank you my amazing God ❤
I tried talking with my younger brother about the one known as Jesus; I tried 3 times. Each time, he was more angry than the last; and he told me to shut up.
I used to be in the Air Force. I wasn't able to reenlist. I was later accepted into the Air Reserves and had plans to return to active duty. Shortly after being accepted into the Reserves, I broke my back. 3 PT test failures later, I realized that the military was no longer an option. I walked into my hotel room and burst into tears. But then I remembered the 4th time I had a conversation with my younger brother. I had 'given up' on him having a shot at salvation; but the 4th time, *he came* to *me* and apologized. He wanted to hear me out this time. He is a Christian now; this is a man who went out and got a pentagram tattooed to his elbow (I think he did it to spite me after our 3rd conversation.)
I don't know what the connection is, if any; but maybe we should stop trying to take things into our own hands and just pray more. It may be a sort of arrogance to think that you can 'change' someone. God has to do it. After all, I wasn't always a Christian and nobody could change my mind; I remember all-too-well. God had to do it, Himself, for me. It used to upset me. "Why, God? Why did you reveal yourself to me? What was the point? Nobody wants to hear me. I don't understand." It wasn't until I let go and left everything in His hands that things started to work out. I can't say for certain weather or not that's how it works for everyone; but that's how it worked for me. I felt so happy when I looked at my brother's new picture. He was standing under a statue of Jesus, smiling. That's something that I never thought I'd see. It was like God was telling me "you are *not* failing. It's ok; I am here."
I'm still stressed out and my future seems so hopeless and bleak; but I know that God is with me. Somehow He is going to get me thru this life, broken back or not. My grades started to slip (I had been relying on my GI Bill to get paid for going to school.) The school ended up kicking me out and wouldn't give me a second chance. I have no income now and the bank is threatening to take away my car, the only thing I have left. I purchased it in 2015 when I still had a career ahead of me (or so I thought.) With a little over $5,000 left to pay off this 30,000 and something dollar car, It's going to be taken away, like everything I put into it never mattered, just like the Air Force. I'm trying to file for disability with the VA for mental health issues and my back; but even that isn't looking very good. I feel so alone and scared; but I know that God is with me in these hard times. We don't get to understand all of it; and I don't know why. If times are hard for you, you're not the only one. Everything happens for a reason; and more often than not, we don't really get to figure out 'why.' Sometimes I feel like it's just the book of Job, to see if I'm still His guy. There are times where I want to just throw that book away and quit for good; but I know that it's real. I'm just grateful that my family loves me enough to let me sleep in the garage, even though I'm a useless bum who can't work anymore.
God bless you all. I sincerely hope that everything works out well for everyone, and I do mean everyone. I'm a bit of a 'troll' when it comes to the internet; and again, the 'mental health' issues... I'm not mentally sound. I may be bipolar, among having PTSD issues, anxiety over many things, and a busted back... but overall, I'm a 'good' guy. Although I tend to insult people and argue online, I don't mean it. We're all just people; and we're all just trying to get by.
I pray that God does pull through and guide us all in the right direction. Peace.
Biblically speaking none of us are good. We must realize the wretch we are so we may stay in repentance.
Your messages touched my heart. I will be praying for you brother. May God bless you with heavenly knowledge and wisdom and truly teach you what it means to deny yourself so He may lead you. In Jesus name I pray , amen
Powerful! Thanks for sharing. Godspeed
Our Heavenly Father hasn’t forgotten about your life and he’s still working on your life too he’s a loving father and he’s closer than you think! We don’t deserve his mercy but he’s given us mercy and love, not all of us perfect either! Thank you for your story!
Wrong! You are not useless. You have a purpose even though it may be difficult to conceive at times. 🙏🏽
There’s no way that you are useless when this message is going to reach someone that needs to hear it.
Wow so it’s a privilege and an honor to be granted repentance and entrance into the Kingdom of God’s. ✨
That's the point. When we understand salvation from this perspective it gives God ALL of the glory because we realize how much of a gift salvation really is. We realize it's not a result of self-determination but the grace of God. He gets all the credit and the gospel becomes infinitely precious to us.
U always were OK JUST PRAY TO THE HOLY SPIRIT AND U RECEIVE EVERYTHING HE GUIDES EVERYONE AND PRAT TO OUR CREATURE HALLOW BE HIS NAME .BLESS DON'T EVER WORRIE UR GOING TO HEANEN EVERYONE IS GOING OUR CREATURE DOESN'T DESTROY HIS CREATIONS OK DONT BELIEVE THE NEGATIVE TEX ILL SHOW U HOW THE HOLY SPIRIT IS IN U AND EVERYONE IN THE WORLD WITH NO BINLES STORIES .THIER READING SAME OLD THINGS OVER AND OVER IVE READ THE BIBLE 5 TUMES AND LAUGH
This is an excellent explanation of God's sovereignty. It is not up to the man who wills or runs but God who has mercy according to His own righteous purpose.
man can sing i did it my way all day long ,but GOD disagrees in Jeremiah 10 : 23
its not biblically accurate
What is not biblically accurate?
Christ will not turn away anyone who comes to him. Not one.
John 6:37
"All whom My Father gives (entrusts) to Me will come to Me; and the one who comes to Me I will most certainly not cast out [I will never, no never, reject one of them who comes to Me]."
To believe that God damns some to hell before birth is a doctrine of demons, IMO. That belief goes against His very character. We see what the Father is like in the Son, when He walked on this earth. Healing the sick, delivering the oppressed, and raising the dead to life, having mercy on all who came to Him. Did you see anyone He turned away? No, no one. He is a merciful God full of grace, not desiring that any perish but that all come to the knowledge of the truth and receive the free gift of eternal life with Him. That is His character.
Ezekiel 33:11
"Say to them, As I live, says the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?"
You can choose to turn away from Him, but that is on you, not God.
@@donpetty7584 "To believe that God damns some to hell before birth is a doctrine of demons, IMO"
It may be your opinion but your opinion does not agree with the Word of God. I agree that whoever comes to Him, He will not turn away but the question is who can come to Him? No one comes to the Son except whom the Father calls.
Jesus came to seek and save those that are lost, that is everyone.
The best explanation of these scriptures. I recall reading The first few chapters in Isaiah and struggled to understand why God would say this. Of course, judgement is the reason. Thank you Pastor John. I love your teaching. Blessings in Christ.
God's will is above ALL. Anything that has happened was permitted by HIS will. We have free will, but even that aligns with GOD'S will, no matter the choice. Through his will, he demonstrates his love, mercy, kindness, wrath, justice and peace. I pray to be on the graceful side of his will. I also pray that anyone who reads this comment asks to be enlightened about the depth of his will if you don't know already. Peace and blessings to you all.
When it is said (in the question), that "GOD Keeps People From Salvation", that is going beyond Holy Scripture. Just incase anyone is shaking their head, "yeah". It seems like their doctrine of man is a too elevated. We are headed for hell, born in sin and trespasses, enemies of GOD In CHRIST, following satahn in the kingdom of darkness. However, GOD Intervenes On Behalf of HIS Elect, Granting Them Faith (by the Preaching and Hearing of the Glorious Gospel of CHRIST), by HIS Grace In CHRIST, alone. HE Converts Them, Taking Out the heart of Stone and Giving Them a Heart of Flesh, Making Them to Respond in Faithful-Obedience, rather than in rebellion. And this - all to the Praise of HIS Glorious GRACE In CHRIST!
So, by “God intervenes”, what your saying basically is that God put microchips on some people’s (“Elects”) brains (figuratively speaking) that will make them love Him. How genuine do you think is their love for God in this case? In fact, why didn’t God just not create those He ended up NOT electing?
What you’ve been saying above do not address the heart of the question(s) vs calvinism: If God is Just, was He being fair by choosing who will be saved, and what was the basis of His choice, seeing everyone is a sinner in His eyes?
Was God sovereign over man’s nature? What about man’s guilt at birth? Did God guarantee man’s eternal torment by design?
Let me ask you, how did God harken to Joshua's voice (as the Bible says God did) if Joshua had no voice of his own, save for what God forces him to say?
I really want an answer to that too
Yup. That's basically it, right there. Both Armenianism and Calvinism are both in part Scriputrally spot-on, in part Scripturally WAYYYYY off. Armenianism teaches a person can somehow "lose salvation" despite Scrip[ture being PACKED with saying otherwise, and Calvinism teaches this "predestination" thing. Not even close. (See comment above.)
I'm thankful that I am one of the ones who Believe in God and am still hoping for more people to believe in God
This is good stuff. We cant even wrap our heads around the magnitude of The Love, The Grace & The Mercy of The Cross. The message of the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved it is THE POWER OF GOD, we are reconciled to God in Christ, Praise His Majesty
Amen! So nicely said
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!
Matthew 23:37 ESV
I don’t get how you can read this and still say what he says at 2:50
Correct... because NO MAN is willing.
NO MAN seeks God, no, not even one [Rom 3:10-12]
www.5thKingdomofHeaven.com
--
@@wisevirgin3405 Hi. I also believe that, but it does not mean that we cannot act upon God's appeals to be saved or to come to Him. God through His grace can enable us to believe and God never forces or coerces us to believe. I appreciate Dr. John Piper very much, but I just don't agree with his Calvinistic presuppositions. In your own time, you can look up the following Scriptures: Jer. 7:31; Ez. 18:30-32; Mark 6:6; Luke 7:30; John 3:36; 5:30-47 (which forms part of the context of John 6:35-71); Acts 18:27; Rom. 9:30-32; 10:13; 1 Tim. 2:4-6; 4:10; 1 Joh:2:2 and there are many others. Obviously many discussions can be held about these Scriptures, but I don't think this is necessarily the right platform to have long discussions. If you want so some good alternative answers to verses that Calvinistic brothers and sisters in Christ use to support there doctrines, look at the Soteriology 101 website and TH-cam-channel; Dr. Ken Wilson's book, The Foundation of Augustinian-Calvinism and follow and enquire some non-Calvinistic commentaries. As time and your studying of resources go by, you will probably stumble upon some great commentaries and articles. I know I have. Thanks for replying🙂
Wise Virgin If. ⚡️NEWS FLASH⚡️ God sought US!
He sent His Son, what more do you want?
Was that not good enough?
The Righteousness of God In Christ Jesus yes amen that’s exactly what I said 🙏🙏.
Sad that people don’t realize this or think it’s good enough.
Jesus said anyone who comes to him, he will never cast out, and the "how" of it doesn't cross my mind.
Yes, but Jesus ALSO said that NO MAN could come to Him unless
the Father "draws" them... and those are the ones "chosen" or "elected"
before the foundation of the world. You cannot use SELECT verses
(that leads to heresy) you must harmonize ALL RELATED verses.
www.5thkingdomofheaven.com/chapter-1
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@Randy Osgood who are the all referring to here? The ones God has enticed them and only those.
Wise Virgin one becomes the "elect"by obeying the gospel
If you and I come to him, then that is good, whether we choose God or God choose us. As a very wretched sinner, I suspect it was all His Grace.
@@wisevirgin3405 “those whom He FOREKNEW, He also predestined” Romans 8:29-30. God predestines those whom He knew from before time would turn to Him.
he literally said "free will is not biblical", then said, "no one is made blind against their will"...
exactly what i’m thinking. I don’t quite get his explanation. It’s as if God is looking around to see how people are responding to Him. If they aren’t responding with repentance, He hardens their heart even more, as a judgment. How can this make sense if man has no freewill?
Hes confused 😂
I feel that praying is a big part of the gift of the revelation of truth and believing. I was a doubting believer but I prayed every day for truth and for YHWH to bless me with taking the vail away. Slowly over time He is testing me and I keep praying, every time I keep going when I'm tested He blesses me with new levels of hearing learning and seeking Him and I promise it's not easy, more than worth it though. The ALMIGHTY answers prayers. We are only blind when we choose over and over to do wrong and ignore the Most High. The bible says he gave them over to their sin, that implies they had many chances and wore out the patience of the Most High. Pray your name is in the book of life, pray your name is not blotted out of the book of life, pray you don't fall into temptation, etc many verses that imply it's up to us , not fully, but in part. Also many scriptures about praying and seeking Him no matter what, that imply the power of our choices to believe and sometimes stubbornly, blind faith produces strongest faith and relationship with the ALMIGHTY and the Savior. He desires all to be saved, simply said, so it must be our will and choice, again at least in part. Love you all keep shining and believing!
God only hardens people's hearts who refuse to believe in him.
& what shall we say involves "believing", when there are so many unbelieving Christians.
If God only hardens people's hearts who refuse to believe in him, then the hardening is redundant -- they already freely refused to believe.
@@brendonburdett7015 What do you mean by "unbelieving Christians"?
How do you define "Christian"?
I'd say anyone who believes Jesus is the uniquely divine and ontologically equal Son of The Father, you qualify as a "Christian."
I think there are tons of Christians who are not going to get eternal life, but I'd call any believer a Christian.
Mike Winger has a great video on Judicial Hardening. I do not believe that Jesus regenerates me so that I can be repent and believe. I believe, and the Bible teaches that, Jesus offered me a genuine offer of salvation and hope in Christ, and I have to respond in my free will. That's why jesus says its wise to build your house on the rock of Jesus. The people who dont are foolish.
People's hearts are already hardened due to sin. It's only through God's grace that he grants us the desire to believe in him.
Those of us who, for some reason utterly lost to us, have been called to life have only this to cling to: "By grace alone... through faith alone... in Christ alone."
Eternity is too short a time to fully acknowledge this wonder!
I never noticed before but "so that they may" doesn't imply that God's purpose is for them not to see or hear, just that it allows them the freedom not to.
Yes, this is why it is the Way it is. Suppose you have the task of preparing your Son or Daughter's wedding. Would you invite those who hate your Son or even worse those who would see your daughter with someone else in an adulterous way on their wedding celebration. God gives grace to the humble but the proud He opposes.
I'm not a Calvinist, but I do believe that 'so that' in Luke 8:10 (Greek: hina) does imply purpose. I don't think that can be avoided. Formally at least, the text states that God's purpose in giving parables was so that people might not see or understand.
Interesting responses, thanks.
It is a bit of a chicken and egg situation I think. Free will and who chooses what, I mean. From our limited perspective it can be looked at either way since cause and effect are inextricable but God presumably sees it as it is. In science that's what we'd call an observer effect so I personally can't disagree with Calvinists or non-Calvinists on the issue. Not that I'm awfully well studied on the matter but that's just how it appears to me at the moment.
Can u explain this thoroughly? I can't seem to understand the answer of the question in this video that much. :(
No, that's how they talked back then, and that's the best way for the Greek and Hebrew to be translated into English. When it says "may" or "might" that doesn't always mean what it would mean in our culture today
"Whosover calleth upon the Lord shall be saved." That excludes no one.
You are right my friend,I believe people refuse to be saved because they choose not too,God grants repentance to those that take him by faith
Someone who wasn't chosen to know the truth when he sees it will not call upon the Lord.
Truth. But those who wish to remain blind to God and his righteousness will never "call upon the name of the Lord."
I lay down my life for the sheep...
You might want to read the next verse before you conclude that no one is excluded
*How are they to call on one they have not believed in?* And how are they to believe in one they have not heard of? And how are they to hear without someone preaching to them?
Romans 10:14
Can't call unless you believe first.
Matthew 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
Jesus also says go sell all of your THINGS and follow me, How man people do you think could or would do that?
No one is made blind against their will 🙌
JEREMIAH 7
God is the same yesterday today and forever.
For all of you worried about your salvation on this thread, the scripture says "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved". It's that simple! Jesus died for your sins. Believe and turn from your sin. There is a combination of God calling people and us choosing to follow Him. That's Biblical. You don't need to overthink it!
Waiting for calvinists to challenge the free will of choosing to believe in Him
Amen we can not work for our salvation only believe but I'm still going to keep the 10 commandments because the fruit of the spirit is
Galatians 5:22
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
Powerful! Thank you for bringing clarity to this difficult subject.
Romans 11:15
For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?
Romans 11:25-26
For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:
“The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
If God didn’t harden the Jews, then I wouldn’t be saved. And to know that my being saved is contributing to the final salvation of Israel... wow! How rich is the mercy of God!
Mr Bushcraft the "Israel" (the Garden olive tree) refers to spiritual Israel, not fleshly Israel, Mat. 21:43, Rom 2:29, Gal.3:29, 1 Pet. 2:9. Rev 7:3,4, 14:1--4.
For the seeds of faith to sprout in our lives, we must avoid satans grasp and have an abundance of faith with daily humble prayer. Asking for strength and forgiveness.🙏
What a wonderful answer to a question many have. I do see and hear that our God is all knowing and will bring a blessed kingdom together.
We have to accept the mystery of this wisdom to harden or soften the heart. Not presuming we can understand more than our finite minds are capable of; as if the mind of God could be wrapped up in a neat little box and fully understood, by his creatures. That's an important application to make. We just need to marvel and share the gospel all the more freely, widely, intentionally and urgently, because we don't know whom God has chosen to hear and believe. May we be used to this purpose.
I know God was calling out of a new age
cult, it was so incessant that I knew I had
to come to Jesus, and not long after I was born again, repented of being a part
of this cult, and other sins I had been a
part of thank God for my salvation!
A profound and detailed and, above all, Biblical response.
That much so... Many will not understand...
Thank you pastor John for bringing us God's message and wisdom to us.....God is good amen
Jesus wants everyone to believe in him
Jesus says that when a demon is cast out, 7 more will arrive. He says this in response to the Jewish leaders demanding a sign. Thus if they aren't going to believe, it would be worse for them if Christ did more to convince them.
My first time listening to a Dr. Piper podcast. Surprised to hear him demolish Calvinism at 9:35, and make the most clear statement of the "free will" position (at least mine) that I've heard yet (based on Isaiah 6:9-10).
*_"This indifference to God is what they want._* There's nobody kicking and screaming into blindness ...
"Nobody is made blind to God, who loves to see God." (Piper).
I totally agree. God, in His Grace, reveals Himself to us in the Gospel, and through HIs Creation, and we choose to either believe Him, or to remain in unbelief, - it's our choice. Either way, He will remain faithful to us, because He's a righteous God, and He doesn't want anyone to perish in unbelief.
(Mark 16:16) _Whoever _*_believes_*_ and is baptized _*_will be saved,_*_ but whoever does _*_not believe will be condemned._*
(Rom 4:3) For what does the Scripture say? *_“Abraham believed God,_* and it was counted to him as righteousness.
(John 6:35) And Jesus said unto them, ... *_he that believeth on me shall never thirst._*
The devil causes some people not to believe and remain unsaved:
(Luke 8:12) ... then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, *_lest they should believe and be saved._*
Jesus marvelled at the unbelief in His own hometown:
(Mark 6:6) And *_he marvelled because of their unbelief._* And he went round about the villages, teaching.
Because someone doesn't believe in Him, does that make God unrighteous? No, He's always faithful, it is the one refusing to believe whom God will righteously judge:
(Rom 3:3) For *_what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?_*
(Rom 3:6) God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world?
GOD BLINDED THE JEWS SO THAT THE GENTILES WILL ENTER THE KINGDOM. BUT THE EYES OF THE JEWS WILL BE OPENED AT A LATER TIME WHEN THEY WILL CRY AND MOURN FOR THE ONE THAT THEY PIERCED. THANK YOU JESUS CHRIST FOR YOUR SACRIFICE FOR OUR REDEMPTION AND SALVATION AND YOUR MIRACLES AND WORDS AND YOUR DIVINE MERCY AMEN ❤️ SHALOM AMEN ❤️
Jesus knows all things Including each person's future, He knows who will repent and who will not. He knows who will Choose him and who will not. He never interferes with our freedom of Choice.
It's not only God knows who will believe. God gives faith to come to Christ since no one is able to come to Christ. John 6:44
Sir read romans Non seek after God he chooses us we can’t choose him
If God hadn't done so much work and Sent his "word" to us and his apostles and prophets and even came to the earth himself! and when he was here, Jesus was a man of Toil, a hardworking man. Imagine if he had never done all this, perhaps none would be saved!
@Ben Jones He acted first this verse sums it up 1 John 4:19
“We love him, because he FIRST loved us.”
The Scripture that tells us HOW to get into the Kingdom and How to be Born again is John 3:5 and Acts 2:38. Jesus said in John 3:5 That we must be Born again of water and of The Spirit in order to get into The Kingdom.
Acts 2:38 Peter explains HOW to be Born again, and that is to repent and be baptized in Jesus Christ Name for the remission of your sins and then you will be filled with The Holy Ghost. Then you will be RAPTURE READY!
Then Jesus also says in Mark 16 That these signs will follow them that believe and is baptized, it says they will speak in New Tongues
. The New Tongues are The SIGN or EVIDENCE that The Holy Ghost has entered you and now you are BORN again!
Just like in the natural when a baby is born there is the water it is brought forth out of and when it is born it already has a soul, and when it takes its first breath, and that is his spirits entering into him/her. And whatever country that child is born in, it will be evident by the language it will automatically began to speak.
The same in the Spiritual, we must be brought forth out of the water ( baptized) and then GOD fills us with His Spirit. And now we are BORN AGAIN into The Kingdom of GOD, so now we WILL speak the native tongue of heaven because this is The Country we are Born into The Kingdom of Heaven is the place of our rebirth. GLORAAAY Be To Our GOD!
No where does the Bible say say that God is withholding or preventing salvation. Jesus said that Satan deceives us and that repentance leads to mercy. While God permits the god of this world to deceive those _willing_ to be deceived, Jesus said those who come to him will "in no wise be cast out." (John 6:37). Contrary to your analysis, God will *_always_* grant repentance to those who seek him out. You are making God out to be a liar, and that is extremely dangerous.
John is a Calvinist, that is one of their beliefs pray for him to repent from any false doctrine and to accept Jesus Christ as his true Lord and Savior, so that his name will be written in the lamb' book of life. God want you to pray for your pastor when they're in error when it comes to the gospel of Jesus Christ . if you love John, pray for him.
I think you're misreading John's and the Bible's message. He never said that those who seek God out will be rejected, on the contrary: they are exactly the elect. The thing about God's sovereignty is comparable to the author of a book - God operates on a higher level than us. If a person believes in God and chooses to come, the ultimate reason is that it's God's sovereign will, a gift of faith and a desire for Jesus, that God gives to those whom he chooses. The Bible does in fact say that God hardens certain hearts, Pharaoh as one example, the Israelites in Isaiah's time another. I'd suggest listening to 8:10, and especially 9:10, where John says the same as you in that the hardening of hearts is not happening to people who love the word of God.
This truth is an assurance to God's people in that if they find a desire to seek God, then the fact they have that desire assures them that their salvation is God's will, and nothing can break that bond since God upholds our salvation!
@@jeffvandyke1239 I completely agree. It is both. We are both predestined as His elect AND we turn and decide to follow Him or not (free will). Saying it is only personal choice is also a bit on the other side of the continuum and equally finite thinking. It's not either/or, both can be simultaneously and compatibly true.
The Bible is clear, God Himself chose who would be saved. The election is His choice, and it was predestined at a very specific time in history - “before the foundations of the world.”
God did not look through the corridor of time to see who would eventually choose Him - that is impossible with God being All Knowing. It is by God’s sovereignty that He chose. It was a choice completely independent of any human will or intervention. If God looked down the corridor of time, if God’s decision was based on man’s decision, that would be God choosing in a passive sense, and man choosing in the active sense. But Scripture uses active form of the verb in Greek, prognosis, or “foreknowledge”. It is the concept of a very deliberate choice. The elect are the sinners who God has predestined to respond to the Gospel. Each and every person born is born as a sinner. Completely dead in our sins. A dead man cannot choose to be alive - nor can a spiritually dead man choose to be reborn in Christ. Our sin separates us from God. Our sin places us at enmity against God, it is an act of treason. God is a righteous and just judge, and He has declared all of us sinners as guilty of this treason against His Holy Name. Our punishment is a tormented eternity in Hell, separated from God. Christ’s sacrifice on the cross is the only possible payment worthy to pay the fine for our crime. He paid the debt owed. By God’s grace, we can have saving faith to repent of our sins and turn to Christ, trusting Him for our salvation.
RC Sproul said, “Calvinism does not teach and never has taught that God bring people kicking and screaming into the Kingdom or has ever excluded anyone who wanted to be there. Remember that the cardinal point of the Reformed doctrine of predestination rests on the biblical teaching of man’s spiritual death. Natural man does not want Christ. He will only want Christ if God plants a desire for Christ in his heart. Once that desire is planted, those who come to Christ do not come kicking and screaming against their wills. They come because they want to come. They now desire Jesus. They rush to the Savior. The whole point of irresistible grace is that rebirth quickens someone to spiritual life in such a way that Jesus is now seen in His irresistible sweetness. Jesus is irresistible to those who have been made alive to the things of God. Every soul whose heart beats with the life of God within it longs for the living Christ. All whom the Father gives to Christ come to Christ (John 6:37).”
@@milaniamilani5737
Amen 100% agree
I bless God my Savior for His gift of salvation that He has given to me.
I was thinking about the verse of God wanting all people to be saved. I came across this video. It explained to me, that God wants all people to be saved. So, nowI know the chapter and verses that explains that. Thank you Yeshua.
That is a Pauline truth.
1Tim.2
[4] Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
Faith comes by hearing and hearing the word of God! So yes then your faith is dependent upon your response to the gospel and feeding upon the word of God! Scripture says that God has dealt to each man a measure of faith, what we do with it from there is up to us
Where does Scripture say “God has dealt to each man a measure of faith, what we do with it is up to us”?
Stevie McSchneive romans 12:3, then Jude says to build yourselves up in the most holy faith praying in the Holy Ghost. Jude 1:20
Who sends the people God so yes is all God works
@@briancufishin24 Romans 3:9-11 Sir we don’t. What about cain and Able ? Able was not love by God before he was in the womb ? This is scripture God choose who to have mercy is not of our own will if you say we choose God is wrong how can somebody dead to sin seek righteousness if they can’t acknowledge their stance
@@briancufishin24 God only know i hope it’s for The good
If,we are saved from before the foundation of the world,EPHESIANS 1:4, Then GOD knew who would be saved and who would reject HIM before it actually happened.
The bible says Ezekial 33:11,”I TAKE NO PLEASURE IN THE DEATH OF THE WICKED”,so what it boils down
to is GOD knows the future of each one of us.we choose our own path.
It’s not that GOD condemns us,we condemn ourselves.
That's a contradiction. If "GOD knows the future of each one of us" then it doesn't matter what we decide to do; it will always be what god predicted. We don't condemn ourselves, we just execute the plan god has for each of us.
@Piesho Nais If one night you’re working late and your friend calls you and spoils the ending of a basketball game, saying the Lakers won, then when you get home you decide to watch the game even when you know how it ends: does that mean you’re controlling every player on the field, do they not have free will anymore? Same thing goes for us and God.
@@delideluca7425 You are talking about witnessing the repetition of an event. Do these players have free will to execute their plays in the real-time game? That's when I think they don't according to determinism theory.
@@piesho knowing is not predicting, He simply knows which will seek Him and which will deny Him
@@nananana8053 "knowing is not predicting" Of course it is. We predict outputs base on what we know about the inputs. It happens everywhere, from sports and weather to logic and religious claims.
Answer: he doesn’t
This is the correct answer to the question. It’s not hard. Calvinists make it hard.
Amen. The Bible says that God does not desire the death of a sinner (Peter 3:9) but that all should come to repentance. The early church believed and knew this to be truth from the beginning. Only subsequent breaks have caused this heresy to resurface.
I think the question would have been better worded as “Why did Christ purpose some not to believe?”. The word “want” is a bit vague and allows for levels of desire. For example: if God wanted men to have free will yet also wanted all men to be saved, one of His desires had to be stronger than the other for Him to act in the way He did. (I’m neither affirming nor denying free will, just using it as an example).
@@craigjoyner9857 You clearly don't like the sovereignty of God but prefer to believe that Man is sovereign. Who makes one to differ from another? Did we create ourselves?
@@pauljohn1979 You clearly don't believe God is capable of giving man the freedom to choose without compromising His own sovereignty.
The TRUE God is more than capable.
The purpose of this current creation is to give the opportunity for ALL of mankind the opportunity of becoming part of the new creation as described at the end of Revelation.
Sadly many will resist that opportunity. Others will miss out through succumbing to false doctrines, "because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved."
I am SO great full to hear the words of TRUTH from Pastor John. Never before have I heard The Word go into such details about things that not all churches talk about. This was deep, interesting not to mention how informative this is. It makes so much sense of GOD, The Bible, life & people's ways & thought processes. This is great & sheds a lot of light on things, bc it reminds me of GOD and the phahoah who's heart was hardened by TMH --- he got what he deserved bc he was truly Evil towards the Israelites. It all makes great sense how TMH thinks & deals with mankind bc basically HE knows Everyone's heart. And why should HE bestow GOOD things to the Ungrateful & waste HIS gifts? Thanks for this session & channel. GOD Bless you.
@gloriavalentine8173 Just a word of warning in regards to John Piper. I suggest you look into Calvinism and its heresy teaching . John Piper is a 5 point tulip Calvinist ...You mention "deserves", as if to say some deserve salvation and some damnation. NONE of us deserves salvation. We all are wretches yet even while we were sinners God, rich in mercy, opened our eyes and gave us us the grace , by faith, to believe in Jesus ..I highly suggest you look into Calvinism and why it is NOT biblical at all. Lots of videos on youtube about it...
God has put salvation out there so that no one is able to NOT see it. The rest is up to the individual.
Not true. Not scriptural
Yes, but absolutely no. It is an utter miracle. No-one can truly understand how it (salvation) reached into our empty hearts and muted ears, that we have come to know Christ crucified. My God! may we fall on our knees every waking breathe and cry out to Him in glory for having had such mercy on us.
seems like a vastly inadequate oversimplification
That's Pelagianism, Patrick
Not everyone *wants* to be saved. Sad truth. Romans 1, and 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 explain best.
If only they heard the good news gospel, people would coming running into the kingdom of God.
If they truly understood hell, they'd run faster...
Matthew 6:24 Kjv
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
This "jesus of NAZARETH", NAZARETH people, NOT Bethlehem, WAS NOT Who they Crucified for the sins of man...
HERE is The REAL MESSIAH, Who they REALLY Crucified for the sins of man
Yad He Vav He is what Moses wrote (Dead Sea Scrolls Exodus 3), not "I Am" OR "God"
Yad = Hand
He = Breath
Vav = Nail
He = Breath
Yad He, which forms The Creators Name YaH, (Hand Breath), as YaH's Hand Forms/Creates and His Breath brings forth life (Adam)
Vav He (Nail Breath), YaH's Sacrifice of Crucifixion, for those who call YaH Savior, His Breath brings forth life (Salvation)
YaH arrives via the Tent of Meeting (Exodus 33:7:11), the exact same way YaH arrived to Joseph NOT through childbirth.
YaH was NOT Crucified on a "cross", but according to Hebrew law (Deuteronomy 21), to be Hung on an Almond Tree for Blasphemy as the Messiah claimed He was YaH.
He was YaH
Isaiah 42:8
"I am YaH; that is my name! I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols.
Isaiah 43:11
I, I am YAH, and there is no other Savior but Me.
Isaiah 45:5
I am YaH, and there is none else.
@@brendonburdett7015 The 4 Gospels are only a very small content of the whole Bible. There are some 30 to 40 thousand opinions/divisions of what the "Good news of the KINGDOM" is. (According to Google). People want everlasting life, yes, but among various reasons most dont want to be footstep followers of Jesus aka 1 Pet. 2:21. If God through Jesus judges people wont serve him , or do his will they will "perish". John 3:16. So as not be simplistic at least 40% of the worlds population know nothing about God and his word, how they will be judged may well be Him reading hearts as he did with Sodom, and the Ninevites initially. We will have to wait and see how that pans out, but to do that we must be among those "chosen" to survive the coming judgment.
I come so none shall perish but ALL shall have eternal life.
John 6:Rejected by His Own 43 Jesus therefore answered and said to them, “Do not murmur among yourselves. 44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.
John 14:Jesus Promises Another Helper 15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever- 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.
John 16:The Work of the Holy Spirit 13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.
1 John 2: Let Truth Abide in You 26 These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. 27 But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.
Romans 9:Israel’s Rejection and God’s Justice 14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! 15 For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.” 16 So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. 17 For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.” 18 Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.
19 You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?” 20 But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” 21 Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? 22 What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory
John 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, 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.
Matthew 22:14 “For many are called, but few are chosen.”
Mark 4:20 But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”
Acts 17:11 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. 12 Therefore many of them believed, and also not a few of the Greeks, prominent women as well as men.
Romans 10:16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?” 17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
1 Timothy 3: The Great Mystery 16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.
Titus 2:Trained by Saving Grace13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ
If God has given us free will it’s our choice to seek God or not . Life style choices . We all have them . I choose to seek and find the maker of everything .
My brother and several of my friends are unbelievers... This gave me hope and knowledge that I haven't failed.
You have failed but don’t put your hope in your performance but in the finished work of the cross.
I pray that all the people I love, come to Jesus and try my best to give them invitation and to teach them. I can't save everyone, but I can give my heart a prayers to God and he will guide me.
What a crazy question.!! Jesus does not want anyone to "not believe"..... it is their OWN CHOICE.!!
Whosoever will... let them come. Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved... Romans 10: 13 I think
Romans 3:10-12... NO MAN will seek God, no, not even one.
www.5thKingdomofHeaven.com
---
@illinoisben ... You are correct, Jesus died for "His Sheep"
Now tell me... do you know the testimony of the Last Saints?
www.5thKingdomofHeaven.com
I’ve always thought that not only grace but faith is a gift from God and you reinforced my thinking. I believe Ephesians 2:8-9 Reinforces this as well in that everything comes from God 100% we contribute nothing. Otherwise we would think that God owes us… Which unfortunately too many religions including (false)Christianity promotes.
That said, it is by God‘s wonderful grace that he allows one more day for us to share the gospel so that another soul can come and enter through the narrow gate!
Christ’s love from the Suwannee 😎✝️❤️
The grammar of Ephesians 2:8 does not support the idea that faith is the gift referred to. Instead, the act of being saved is the gift that is referenced.
The response from Pastor John seems to involve a lot of theological contortions in order to maintain Calvinistic principles. God is outside time. He knows the beginning and the end, and, accordingly, who will be saved and who will not. Man, within time, has for his part free will to choose to repent or not repent. That said, sin, particularly vanity and pride, leavened with time, hardens hearts and dulls sight, thus making true repentance difficult. From the scriptures, I think man must choose, for else why is the message preached? Why John 3:16-17? Once the decision is made by man to have a contrite heart, humble himself, and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, God forgives. The thief on the cross is an excellent example of this. Man's free will to choose has nothing to do with God's sovereignty -- God is Sovereign and knows the end from the beginning. It has to do with free will and the paradox of free will for a man being a creature within time seeking to commune with a God outside of it.
The above has nothing to do with Arminianism, which Calvinists love to kick out as the either/or proposition if one does not subscribe to Calvinist principles. For example, if one is truly saved, salvation is eternal. One who is saved does not live in perpetual fear of losing one's salvation.
No one seeks God. The Light came into the world but men love darkness. All who sin are slaves to sin. We love Him because He first loves us. Jesus' sheep hear His voice. Adoption is decided by the parent, not the child. Being born again is not of the will of the flesh or the will of man. Repentance is granted. Faith is a gift. Free will has to be defined. A starving lion is free to eat straw to stay alive but he won't because it's not in it's nature. A sinner is free to choose salvation but he never will because it's not in his nature. Natural man is poor, blind, pitiful, and naked and helpless and hopeless outside of God's grace. We are by nature objects if God's wrath.
Those He foreknew, He predestined, called, justified, glorified. His children were CHOSEN in Him before the foundation of the world.
Who will get the glory for this? The LORD!!!
James Jorgensen I totally agree with your post. We humans are totally depraved and by default, hell bound. It is God’s right who’s going to be saved or lost not our “free will” which is a big lie. You can’t have it both ways that God is sovereign and man have free will. For those believers, God gave us the faith we need to get saved. A lot of people are having issues with this because they claim to have free will. Those “whosoever” verses are invitational only and not be taken as basis of free will.
@@edijares1543 and I agree with you. Not because I like you or think you are clever. I agree because that's what the bible teaches!! See you in heaven Ed!!
Stephen Clay Hi. I don't think the pastor in this video is a believer of eternal security . I was for a long time, then was not, now again and for good have no fear of losing my salvation. Thats the short version!! You have an excellent way with words. Do you pastor a church?
No sir. Nowhere in the bible is man said to have "free will". Left to himself, man will always choose wrong. God has to change your heart to love Him and when He does, you will love Him. Read Romans chapter 9.
New age Kemetic Spiritualist and ex scoffer and mocker of the Bible here now saved by Christ Jesus.
Very lovely topic to raise. Yes its true, and let every man work out his salvation with fear and trembling.
God chooses who He will call, according to His will.
The work which God had done on the cross is so unbelieably good, that many professing Christians scoff in disbelief.
Aka: The sin issue...
@Daniel Storm So the good news gospel says that God has forgiven and removed sin for the whole world with one blood sacrifice through Christ...He is not mindful of Sin, yet so many Churchs and Christians are...continually telling people to ask God to forgive them, when they are already forgiven...(dead work as Paul would say)...continually trampling the blood of Christ in disregard that blood must flow for the forgiveness of sins and not just a mere "forgive me Lord for I have sinned".
John 3:16. 1Timothy 2:4. 2 Peter 3:9. God wants everybody to be saved, but He allows free will to choose. Did Adam and Eve not have a choice? In order to hang on to flawed theology, you end up making God the author of evil and not a God of love.
Not true. Since the fall, humans (are spiritually dead) no longer have the ability to choose God. God must intercede & regenerate our heart (as he did with Lazuras). Dead men don't repent. You were born spiritually dead... If you've decided to follow Christ, you are only able to do so because God has regenerated your heart. Salvation is all about what God did for you... Not anything that you choose to do.
@@hesneyk1 Not true. Regeneration follows repentance on the part of Man. Read John 3:16. Read the Great Commission in the relevant Gospels. The unsaved are blind; when the decision to believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior is made, they are saved and then see.
@@stephenclay2763
Jesus the Legend
@@stephenclay2763 the unsaved are blind well said. Only God can open their eyes by His grace. So it's all His doing
@@hesneyk1 To be spiritually dead means to not have the Holy Spirit living in us. It doesn't mean we cannot make a conscious choice. Jesus said, "You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you REFUSE to come to me to have life (John 5:39-40)." Refuse means "unwilling to accept." This means they make a choice not to accept God's call for them to be saved. It doesn't get any simpler than this. th-cam.com/video/3osnuQ69bg8/w-d-xo.html
It reminds me of the story of the Tower of Babel
He doesn’t want ppl to learn the kingdom and be able to go places they have not earned or they are not supposed to be
This is why what Christians say to the carnal ppl sounds like babel, they don’t understand the secret of grace and the kingdom
They will not say the kingdom is here or the kingdom is there
All the while the kingdom is here right in front them in our spirits
❤🙏🏽🎚️
Thanks for sharing this! God’s sovereignty is so difficult for people these days.
I find this answer quite unconvincing. John Piper says that free will to choose salvation is a philosophical presupposition and is not scriptural. But there are many Bible passages that give the impression that people have free will of this kind. For example, in Isa 45:22 God says:
'Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth.'
This passage seems to imply that God is not putting any barrier in the way of people coming to him. And there are many other passages that give a similar impression. And we must remember that language works by giving impressions and implications as much as it does by stating things explicitly.
If Piper is right, then Isa 45:22 seems very misleading, and, of course, it isn't misleading.
It is true that God chooses who is saved in a deep and meaningful sense, but I don't think this has to rule out free will.
@A.R , it's true. If someone is seeking God. He will reveal himself to them.
@@Mark-um5hc Romans doesn't teach that there are any people seeking Him. In fact He states that there is not a single person on earth, throughout all of history, who seeks after Him.
@A.R That is a bit of a different issue from the point I was making. The point I was making is that there are many passages which give the impression that people do have free will whether to choose Christ or not.
And when Piper says that those blinded by God had already made their choice, he believes that the already-made choice could not possibly have been different from what it was. Piper doesn't believe that there is any stage in human experience where people have a genuine ability to choose between the options of accepting or rejecting the ways of God. I find that rather unconvincing. To my mind, there are many biblical passages that need to be given unnatural interpretations to make that theology fit.
@@carljones8334 You are right, of course, that Romans teaches that no one seeks God. But, importantly, that is talking about people 'in the natural', without the input of God's grace.
But when God's grace is brought into the picture, there are different ways of understanding things:
(1) God's saving grace is given only to those whom he unilaterally decides to make Christians.
Or (2) God's grace awakens and enables people generally to have an ability to choose between the options of accepting or rejecting Christ.
The teaching of Romans that no one seeks God doesn't tell us whether (1) or (2) is correct.
@@maxaplin4204 One thing I find helpful for me is;
“And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.”
We preach Christ crucified.
This is something that I have a hard time accepting if I’m honest. I am not Calvinist because of it. To me this theology of no free will ignores a lot of scripture. Salvation being chosen for the elect and open to no one else does not align with several passages and themes in the Bible. God’s promise to Abraham was to bless him and restore the nations through him. This was shortly after the Tower of Babel and the nations were wicked and yet God promised to restore them. In John 3:16 Jesus says “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life”, and in John 3:17 he also says “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” I am not speaking of universalism, merely that God wants all people to turn to him. I do not understand a textual and theological perspective where God creates a world, let’s it fall, and then predetermines which people he will save. He wants all nations to turn back to him. All people were made in the image of God, not just some.
Maybe I don’t know what I’m talking about, and if that’s the case then please forgive me. The doctrine of Calvinism just seems to be adding a flavor to scripture that I don’t see being there.
th-cam.com/video/dp_GMNWGEgo/w-d-xo.html
The Righteousness of God In Christ Jesus @Kyle, this guy is absolutely correct. Don’t let these Calvinistic teachers twist gods word into a complicated perversion. Scripture is clear that he desires none to perish :)
I Believe and trust in 💜Jesus 💞
I am so unworthy!!! How frightening to fall into the hands of the living God. Makes much more sense to me now.
Very well said. To complete the original question I would add this. 1 Tim 2:4 can be better understood if read as follows: “…who desires all to be saved [also] to come to the knowledge of the truth”. The word “and”, can and is, traslated “also”. It is in the very next verse, 2:5 (NASB). Why does this help? God desires “…all to be saved…”, is a reference to the elect, only. In other words, all those “..to be saved…”, will be saved (God’s elect). These can only do so by "coming to a knowledge of the truth”. This understanding strips man of any so called, free will, and exalts God the sovereignty due Him. Re-read this verse in this light VERY carfully, it now aligns perfectly with Acts 13:48 etc. Thank you, pastor John.
Pharaoh in Exodus springs to mind as well. God hardened his heart.
Thank you
His hardening was judgmental. First it states the Pharao hardened his heart.
Sometimes it's the way we understand language today that causes a struggle with understanding Scripture... My pastor explains it like this: It's not that God so much hardened his hard directly (God gave him.many chances), but what God was doing caused the hardness in Pharoah's heart only because he was already against God in the first place. It's that it caused Pharoah to further reject God.
And it was so perfectly just. Everything that Pharaoh had done to the very people that had saved Egypt from certain painful death in seven years of famine was visited back on him. And the plagues were even merciful, and not as harsh a punishment as it could have been. What a mighty, righteous, and just God we serve in our Lord Jesus Christ!
@@The_True_ wanna be friends
It’s not taught in the bible that man has free will in accepting or rejecting God? Really? I must be reading a different bible to John Piper.
Agreed Michael. his ideas are a grabbing at straws to claim an answer. There are other verses that show He has a DESIRE that no one be destroyed. Eg 2 Peter 3:9.
0r saved. Mat. 1:21. As shown at Mat. 7:13--23 people are walking 2 "roads" one most are on going to "destruction" and few on that leading to "life". Therein we see the separation is about who does "the will of God" and those who dont/ didnt. In order to CHOOSE to do that will faith is required. In turn faith is gained by understanding Jesus' illustrations and prophecy, some of which are quite deep.The Greek word "epignosis" (accurate knowledge) is used 19 times as needed, eg Rom 10:2.. Most Bibles sadly only translate that word as "knowledge".
People are taught that our salvation is the most important thing in the Bible. Not so. It is the vindication of his Name that has been sullied by people in general. EG The nation of ancient Israel. Jer 23:27, Mal. 2:1,2. So to preserve that NAME his people must strive to do His will once learned. John 17:3, Luke 13:24. And to maintain that course to the end of their life or to the end of this era. Mat. 10:22, 24:13. So we who have had the accurate good news declared to us and make sustained effort to do his will will be saved, those who choose to ignore it will perish. John 3:16 Of course we have a choice just as Adam had.
You are. The bible teaches man is on bondage to sin and spiritually dead. The only freedom he has is to seek sin and rebellion. No one seeks after righteousness
@@TheJpep2424 Try reading the whole the bible and not the condensed Calvinist proof-text version.
God wants everyone to be saved. The scriptures say he has given EVERYMAN a measure of faith. It's up to every man weather they chose to except Christ or not.
Jesus wanted the rich young ruler saved however the ruler chose to love money instead.
Scriptures says he takes no delight In the death of the wicked.
No... the Bible teaches that ALL MEN are born spiritually DEAD
and are part of Satan's "Kingdom"... yes they have "free will" but,
because of our sin nature, our "free will" is to always SIN. The
Bible is clear.... NO MAN seeks God, no, not even one [Rom 3"\:10-12]
That is why God had to "chose" or "elect" who HE would saved, based
ONLY on His Good Pleasure (not anything they would do) from before
the foundation of the world... does ANY of this "ring a bell for you?)
www.5thKingdomofHeaven.com
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Christ desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth 1 Timothy 2:3-4 and not willing that any should perish but come to repentance 2 Peter 3:9. God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked and wants wicked men to repent and live Ezekiel 18:23,32 and 33:11. For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. John 3:16-17 And this is His commandment, that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as He gave us commandment 1 John 3:23 I think Scripture makes God’s desire for all men to be saved and to believe in Jesus quite clear. We also know that God shows mercy to whom he wills and doesn’t show mercy to whom he wills Romans 9:15. This makes sense because we know that from Romans 1:28 that God will give people over to a debased mind to fulfill the lusts of the flesh (ex. Pharaoh). God is too loving to force us into a relationship we don’t desire, if love is forced upon anyone, that is not real love. Each time one rejects God’s calling and the rejects the conviction of the Holy Spirit, that person heart is hardened. There seems to be a line for every single person, and once someone has crossed that line(blaspheming the Holy Spirit) by hardening their heart to the point of no return (which only God can determine someone has crossed that line) God is loving enough to not force that person into a relationship with Him, and will give them over to their wickedness. I don’t believe for a second that God wants some and not others to be saved, I believe He wants everyone to be saved because He is all-loving. If He offers hope to only some and not others, although He would still be perfectly just, I don’t believe He can be all-loving.
Those verses aren't in the condensed Calvinist proof text version of the bible.
The next generation of Christians began to question why Jesus had not returned yet and people were asking where is Jesus, everybody is passing away but Jesus has not returned.
Christian scribes addressed this questioning in a later letter made to the churches the Lord is not slow about his promise as some think of slowness but is patient with you not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance, 2 Peter 3:9
Unfortunately this excuse that was shoveled out to the first century church..
GOD'S will is that all would believe and the offer goes out to everyone. And that is it. Just believe the gospel guys. put your trust in Jesus he died for everyone
Why should i believe the gospel?
Andrew Wommack teaches that the number one destructive teaching in the churches is the soveregnity of God. God is sovereign God, but He is NOT a dictative sovereign.
God that controls people and their minds and free will is a God of control, and we know that a self ambition is a work of the flesh (Gal 5:19)
This is a question as old as time, debated for centuries..
If God alone is choosing who believes and who doesn't, the darkness in you will reinforce the notion of how you dont want anyone to be God's puppet and how unjust that is!
If man alone is choosing who believes and who doesn't, the darkness in you will reinforce the notion of how unjust that is to the unreached and cause you to question His authority over the events of the earth!
My point is, unless your Moses, and God has spoken to you directly.. then you don't truly know the answer to this question do you? Sure, we can pick our favorite scriptures of the day to back up our view while those who disagree can find scriptures to back up their opposing view, just like with any paradox found in scriptures.. Meanwhile, those who ask or listen PATIENTLY to either side for an unshakeable answer are not always convinced by either side HISTORICALLY.
Look, paradoxes have confounded many a believer, but they dont confound your Creator. The darkness in you will whisper temptations and fears as old as time to doubt God's Word whenever your confronted with a paradox. Don't fall for it or be discouraged (like i once did). Also, dont buy in to a theory on either side of the discussion because a teacher has a "leaning", for that would be reckless and potentially undermine the trusting faith you have that pleases Jesus..
Rather, be thankful for what He has revealed as much as for what He has hidden. Reread that last sentence.
Trust His wisdom, trust His intentions, trust the Father who sent His innocent Son to atone for your sins. You know He loves you.. Trust Him with this profound question and all your other burdens. See that He wont reward your faith in Him somehow.
Well said👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
@MATTHEW PRIDDY - Amen brother, very nicely put. Exactly how God's sovereignty interacts with mankind's free will is a mystery to us, and always will be in this current age. I think the Lord purposefully left certain issues like this without an exact or definitive explanation at least partly for the sake our learning to trust in Him and in His character, and how He is merciful; He is gracious; He is loving; He is righteous; He is holy; He is long-suffering; He is just; He is all-knowing; He in infinitely wise; He is good; He is a God who became a Man and was tempted in all respects like us, yet without sin, so that He can even be touched with the feeling of our own weaknesses (Heb 4:15); He is a God who sent His only begotten Son to die at the hands of His very own creation and be righteously judged in our place in order to redeem us (rebellious sinners) to Himself and bring us back into oneness with Him for His eternal purpose. (and so on)
If all we knew about Him was what we have recorded in the four Gospels, that would be more than sufficient to be able to trust in His character, yet we can know so much more about Him and His ways by reading and praying over all of scripture, as well as by putting our faith and trust into Him during our own lives'. I think a good example of learning to trust in the Lord and be at peace with His ways is when Abraham interceded on behalf of Sodom and Gomorrah, and how he appealed to the Lord's righteousness when he asked Him to consider there being potentially 50 righteous people in the city which He was about to judge and destroy. Abraham then asked Him to consider there being 40 righteous people, the 30, then 20, and finally 10. And as we know, the Lord said that He would not destroy those cities for the sake of 10 righteous people dwelling within them. So why didn't Abraham keep going from 10, 9, 8, 7 .... all the way down to 1? I believe it's because he was satisfied with being able to trust in the Lord's character, and that He is indeed both righteous _and_ merciful, and so he didn't feel the need to keep going.
The Lord may have not given us the clear answer to everything we _want_ to know, but He surely has given us more than enough for what we _need_ to know to be able to put our faith and trust in Him and His often mysterious ways.
When the Bible says that "God desires all people to be saved" is doesn't mean that He will force them to be saved.
J Jenkins, Agree with you.. But I think this verse may have been translated in error since this is the only verse that says, God desires all to be saved... Most verses say that God saves the Elect only....
reynaldo david translated in error? And by what authority do you have to correct the Bible?
@@Ok-uc5in, [[ And by what authority do you have to correct the Bible? ]] RESPONSE: By the Words of God in the Scriptures....
@Unconditional Love, MORON ! Before you say that someone is wrong, You have to prove first that he is wrong... Can you understand that?
reynaldo david I don’t correct it, but some how you think you can. Funny you only have questions and no answers. Usually what happens when you jump out in the deep and can’t swim back
Christ wants all to believe
prove it
Pastor John refutes the Arminianism argument, amen brother and what great joy that by the grace of God we are chosen, for we could not have saved ourselves. We could not, being dead, have seen and decided to choose Him.
I do believe that God/Christ would want ALL to BELIEVE so that ALL might be SAVED... that is the main GOAL and PURPOSE of why God sent the WORD (Son of God) to this world... It was Satan who does not want ALL humans to be saved, and that is why Satan will do anything to twist and bend the WORD OF GOD (Scriptures) and do miracles, apparitions, and great wonders to deceive even the Elect... so that many could HEAR but could not LISTEN (understand/comprehend), and LOOK but could not SEE (perceive the Biblical Truth w/o compromise)... Amen
Bizarre teaching. Having grown up in Calvinism and having now moved away from it, more and more it becomes clear that it is a twisting of the Bible. If God *could* save all but chooses not to, He is not good. He could not say He loves all. And as Dave Hunt points out, that’s what Calvinism ends up teaching: God does not love all; is not kind to all. Calvinism flat out rejects the verses that put all of predestination in the light of God’s open call to all to accept His repentance/faith/forgiveness as a free gift. On the contrary, God does desire that all be saved, but just as the Pharisees and experts in the law “rejected God’s will for them” Luke 7:30, so too do people reject the pleading of the Holy Spirit to accept Jesus. Rejecting Him then hardens their heart, and once man has hardened beyond the point of turning, the message and urging of the Holy Spirit is closed to them. This is not a fake simulation game. If God’s *selection* is what saves then Jesus did not have to die. God could have just chosen who to save. That’s in effect what saves in Calvinism. This makes a mockery of the clear open call that the Bible extends to everyone. It isn’t fake. It isn’t a simulation. And free will is the *practical* application from the Bible anyway! Not one person apart from perhaps Paul gets saved by being dragged to it apart from having to make a choice. And that choice for many involves years of temptation to deny Christ and follow their own desires, some having known the truth and having rejected it. There is a definite battle of the will and each person must make that *choice* to bow down and follow Jesus or to reject Him…! This is the human experience. We do not experience mere election. We have free will and confronted with the gospel, we must choose this day whom we will serve…!
I love these questions to think about. I always go back to God is not confused about what is perfect and what is right. We get it wrong on a daily basis. At the end it will all be made right. "Endure to the end". God bless you guys.
Good for you @Desiring God. You were chosen, it's a pity that some of us weren't and we have no choice in the matter. Looks like salvation is only for you and rest of us can do nothing about it.
All can be saved , John 3:16 . Please search on TH-cam videos about " Prayer and Fasting " .
I don't agree with John Piper here. I believe that Christ died for ALL elect and non-elect. And that we have free will in choosing God and that God doesn't prevent us from knowing Him.
Matt 16:18 Kjv And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
I agree with Pastor John. God is almighty, and there is nothing He cannot do if he wills. If He plans to save a particular person, the person will be saved no matter what. If someone is not saved, it has to mean that God did not plan or will to save that person. I don’t think we are capable of fully understand “why” God does not save all people, but that does not change the fact that God’s will will be done 100%.
If you believe this is the character of God, why would you ever trust him?
I think your right. Satan is a god. He’s the god who rules the earth and many Christians are believing in the devil thinking it’s god and spreading hate and injustice. Telling the innocent that they will go to hell if they cannot endure Pain that no one could. God doesn’t pick favorites like this. Satan picks favorites.
👍🤷🏼♂️
I trust God simply because He would send His only begotten son to die on the cross for me, a sinner just to take a way my sin. If he who would die for me is not trustworthy, if He who want to wash away my sin so badly that He could only sacrifice His only son for me is not trustworthy, I don’t know whoelse is more trustworthy then.
John Piper: God loves you!*
*terms and conditions may apply
9:30
😂
@@K1370 he doesn’t quote absolute when he says that
God's love for us has no conditions.
Our dwelling with God does.
Does anyone else look at the big dots to cover up the small dots
Yes
Do you think there is a spiritual message in that? If you cover up the tiny problems with the bigger blessings you still are at some level bothered by the little things. Give up all the little insignificant worries to God in Jesus's name.
Not till just now.... thanks for that 😂
Son EternalKing 🙄 I bet you find a spiritual message in your coffee too
I think it would be better not to have a moving image. It can be a bit distracting.
God knows the attitude of people's hearts towards God
Thank you. I have been wondering about this for a long time.