I have an 8-seater SUV too, plus a special extra bucket seat!September 30 at 1:44am
"For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified." Romans 8:29-30.
So many love the SOUND of this wonderful passage but they missed the SENSE of it. Let's look at it.
Sing F Lau
The first MOST OBVIOUS FACT to be noted is this:
This passage speaks of ALL the elect, with the exception of none; the truth stated here applies equally to all the elect WITHOUT EXCEPTION.
Having observed this PLAIN and OBVIOUS fact, and then to go on to interpret this passage that militates against this most obvious truth is to make a BIG fool of oneself. And this is what new school calvinists are exactly doing! I will spell this out later. (Remind me if I forget) But, first thing first.
This passage speaks of ALL the elect, ALL them that are called according to God's eternal purpose, and what God will sovereignly and freely do for these SAME exact people, not one more, and not one less. So please NOTE very carefully what is specifically stated that God will do for EVERY SINGLE ONE and ALL of His elect. Please note most carefully also what is NOT stated at all.
Sing F Lau
The things that God will sovereignly and freely do for ALL those that are called according to His eternal purpose are THESE: foreknowledge, predestination, call, justification, and glorification. Here is a most wonderful and perfect and complete 5-links chain, a 5-link chain that is complete and has no place for anything else from human cooperation or contribution.
Please note carefully that these five are SO-LINKED in such manner that they do not allow anything to come in between them. What God has joined together let not man put asunder by adding useless and odious links of his own invention to the perfect and complete chain. Man's activity in any form or shape is ENTIRELY and ABSOLUTELY excluded.
Sing F Lau
Foreknowledge and predestination took place before the foundation of the world.
The call, i.e. the effectual call of an elect, takes place in time at God's own appointed and accepted time... "Those whom God hath predestined unto life, He is pleased in His appointed and accepted time, effectually to call, by His Word [the eternal life-giving Logos] and Spirit, out of that state of sin and death in which they are by nature, to grace and salvation by Jesus Christ..." 1689.10.1.
The justification mentioned here also takes place in time, in conjunction with the effectual call to grace and salvation. "Those whom God effectually calleth, He also freely justifieth..." 1689.11.1
Note most carefully that the effectual call to grace and salvation, have to be the effectual call and NOT the gospel call, because it is obvious beyond a shadow of doubt that there are elect that are not called by the gospel, but ABSOLUTELY each and every one of all the elect are effectually called to grace and salvation at their own appointed time.
Confused new school calvinists, as well as arminians, insist that this is the gospel call made effectual by the Holy Spirit unto the regeneration and conversion of an elect. These obtuse and stubborn folks refuse to accept the plain and obvious truth! To make the call here as the gospel call destroys the chain and excludes many elects from glorification. Why?
Many of God's elect are incapable of responding to the gospel call. PERIOD. Even their own Confession declares that fact!
Sing F Lau
Note most carefully too that the justification spoken about is a justification that must be true to EVERY SINGLE ONE and ALL of the elect of God.
THEREFORE this justification simply and obviously CANNOT be the justification that is by faith, through the hearing and believing the gospel.
This is the justification by God's free grace that is true of EVERY SINGLE ONE and ALL of the elect of God. This happens when He declares an elect under the condemnation of death to be righteous by forgiving all his sins and by applying to him personally the righteousness of Christ.
Rom 3:24 "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."
Confused new school calvinists insist that this is justification by their faith in Christ. These obtuse and stubborn folks refuse to accept the plain and obvious truth! To make the justification here as evidential and experiential justification by their faith. they destroy the chain and shall exclude many elect from glorification.
Why? Many of God's elect are incapable of responding to the gospel call, and they can't exercise faith, and will never be justified, and thus, shall remain in their state of condemnation and death and thus be damned eternally! But Let God be true, and there new schoolers LIARS. Even their own Confession declares that fact!
Sing F Lau
From this passage, you see the plain declaration what God has purposed, decreed and ordained for EVERY SINGLE ONE and ALL of His elect. We must be careful not to break that unbreakable chain and add more useless and pathetic links of our own imagination... like the links of the gospel call, faith, progressive sanctification, etc. and force the Scriptures to say what it does not say. Let God be true and every man a liar!!!
God has most certainly commanded the NT churches to labour to seek the lost sheep and gather them into the churches. And we are to do that faithfully, and we are to labour to gather God's children into the visible church.
God ALSO cares for the well being and comfort of His children while they travel through this world to their eternal home; that work is delegated and entrusted to the church. At the best of time, most often the church fail very miserably.
But sovereign purpose and grace alone ensure all God's elect shall be glorified. Very humbling and comforting.
Many deluded and misguided men think God needs them to house His elect in heaven!!! What arrogance and presumption. "Him that glories, let him glories in the Lord alone" - don't betray any indication that His eternal salvation is somehow remotely dependent upon something man contributes.
It would be wonderful if God has willed that each and every of His elect would enjoy the gospel blessings to the degree that apostle Paul had enjoyed... but God hasn't, otherwise His will will surely come to pass.
Sing F Lau
Why are the verbs all in the simple past tense?
The verbs are so linked together, and so intimately linked together by the purpose and decretive will of God, that the first past tense verb VIRTUALLY GUARANTEES the rest... such that their fulfillment is so assured and certain that they are consider DONE and ACCOMPLISHED! The domino effect set off by the first verb guaranteed the fulfillment of the rest.
Bless the Lord! Eternal Salvation is by God's free and sovereign grace indeed!
And confused and misguided men would introduce preaching, and believing and sanctification into that chain of absolute pure gold of Ophir!
Sing F Lau
There is a justification by God's free grace, PRIOR to any ability to believe. God justifies the ungodly, a condemned sinner.
And there is a justification by the believing act of a child of God. Believing justifies a child of God.
The former is forensic.
The latter is experiential and evidential.
A biblical distinction is the essence of sound theology.
Chapin
Amen, Brother Sing...If the confused child of God could see the difference of this and eternal/temporal salvation, it would clear up many apprehensions they have.
Sing F Lau
I met a raving and ranting RB whose sum total of his understanding of the doctrine of justification seems to his justification before God by his faith!
He would not reason and discuss, nor set forth his view... he just foaming that faith must come before there can be justification before God!
He is confused, and yet speaks with such haughty confidence!
The Scriptures declares that God justifies the ungodly, but he insists that God justifies the believing; he insist that God justifies the believing even though the Scriptures declares that the believing acts of God's children (have to be, because only such can believe!) justifies them!
