Initially posted here: https://www.facebook.com/sing.f.lau/posts/10208871410198019
The Argument on the
Well-meant Offer of Salvation
Consistency, thou
art a jewel.
Inconsistency, thou
art a peddler of lies.
In a nutshell, as I
understand it:
- God decreed and
purposed salvation for His elect.
- Christ executed
that purpose and secured salvation for the same.
- The Spirit applies
that salvation to each elect, dead in trespasses and sins, in the effectual
called out of his native state of sin and death.
God sends His
preachers, either
- to well-meaningly
offer the salvation to all, or
- to call all those
who He has already effectually called to believe the truth of their salvation
by His free and sovereign grace in Jesus Christ.
The choice is
simple; only one of them is consistent with the Scriptures.
(Some believe that
God's decretive will and His preceptive will are different! That's a fable at
best, schizophrenic at worst. I believe they are in perfect harmony.)
Apostle Paul
summarized his whole ministry thus, "Therefore I endure all things for the
elect's sakes..." I conclude that the gospel ministry, consistent with the
particular redemption is intended for and relevant only to the effectually
called elect.
Christ's
recommissioning of the regathered Apostles spelled out the nature of the ministry
of the word, "feed... feed... feed..." The simple question is, feed
who?
Just my feeble
thought