F4S: If you are a Christian, then you have a part in Christ's Great Commission. He wants it that way to bless.

Thursday, May 14, 2015

If you are a Christian, then you have a part in Christ's Great Commission. He wants it that way to bless.

"Man's will is free because God is sovereign. A God less than sovereign could not bestow moral freedom upon His creatures. He would be afraid to do so." ~ A.W. Tozer

It's not regeneration, earnin' saving grace by works, or infant baptism first, then the Gospel arriving second, and then belief arriving third. Nope, but it is the Gospel first, belief second - a personal choice to repent and trust the Lord, and then regeneration inside a person of faith done by God's work.. third. 

"But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” John 20:31 

How could I be so privileged to be offered God's written Gospel of truth first while I was still happy about sinning and breaking His loving heart? And you too? While we were still enemies God the Initiator sent Christ to us the respondents. Now we too can love because He first loved us. 

"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." ~ 2 Peter 3:9

There are none outside the reach of God's love if they are still sucking air. If the person is alive in their body then there is hope for them ..so that is why we pray, love, serve, go tell.. that they will hopefully "get it" in time. We trust God to break through to the understanding how serious this all is. 

"This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth." ~ Paul, 1 Timothy 2:3-4

Yes indeed. It's good to understand that right along with your calling arriving.. came saving grace as you heard the Gospel. And we each choose to accept or resist this grace, but is there any good reason at all for any of us to hold on to pride and or rebellion and reject Jesus? I can't think of one good reason.  

And if you responded to Christ in the affirmative and were regenerated in your human spirit inside, then you now have a great privilege as I do to be a co-laborer with Christ as He without cost offers and blesses people with the greatest gift that God still gives—forgiveness and eternal life. 

“And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the Gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory." Ephesians 1:13-14

God is warmly inclusive, not harshly exclusive with people. Yes, wants to include all who come as they are but are willing to be changed for the good. He is indeed tactful, graciously-sensitive and welcoming of all those who sincerely turn away from their sin.. to Christ.  

“The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come.’ Let anyone who hears this say, ‘Come.’ Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life.” Revelation 22:17

How winsome, how tactful, how patient, how wise and gentle is Jesus. The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. Sinners are always on his heart. He the Groom and His Father are working to win them through the Bride of Christ every day down here. I wonder how many more will yield to the Holy Spirit and be added before the Rapture takes place. But just to re-reading these Bible verses makes me want to become like the Chief Fisher of men and women, boy and girl all the more. 

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” ~ Jesus, John 17:20-21

Regarding election, I believe (as my pastor Chuck Smith Sr in California taught me from the Bible..) that God chose the believer before the foundation of the world (see Ephesians 1:4-6). What God in Bible said is trustworthy. You've been on God's mind a long, long time, so based on God’s love and foreknowledge, He initiated, He sent Jesus, He started it, He has reached out to do his work in drawing you to Himself by His Spirit, but then after you responded rather than resisted Him and were saved (a Bible term) He also predestined you as a believer to what? To be conformed to the image of His Son (Romans 8:29-30). You know that's what sanctification is all about. Jesus catches His fish and then cleans em so to speak. He doesn't say, Hey you, filthy sinner! Clean yourself up and then come to me. Nope, Jesus says come and as we do, He starts changing us from the inside outwards not visa versa. 

I have sought to look into what the Bible has to say on these things for myself, and I encourage you to prayerfully do that as well. If you involve yourself in personal evangelism at all then hyper-Calvinists will find you to try and discourage you in sharing Christ's Gospel. I figure that there's nothing wrong in being ready for em. After I checked it out in the word, I have come to firmly hold these following views regarding their five points of Calvinism
  1. Regarding total depravity, I affirm that "apart from God's grace, no unrepentant sinner can be saved," and that "mankind is clearly fallen and lost in sin."[24]
  2. Regarding unconditional election, I affirm that God, "based on His wise foreknowledge, has predestined the believer," and that "God clearly does choose, but man must also accept instead of resist God's kind invitation to His great salvation."[25]
  3. Regarding limited atonement, I affirm that Jesus Christ died for all people - "for the whole world" and that the "atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ was clearly sufficient to save the entire human race."[26]
  4. Regarding irresistible grace, I affirm that "God's grace can either be resisted and rejected, or accepted and received by faith and the exercise of human free will".[27]
  5. I affirm and firmly "believe in the perseverance of the saints (true born again believers) but are deeply concerned about sinful lifestyles and rebellious hearts among those who call themselves 'Christians'." I never want to give any false assurance to those who willfully choose to live in sin.[28]



Hey God loves you too much to leave you the way you are--He wants you to consistently think, to act, and to love like His Son Jesus does and that's why He allows trials and testings into our lives. But remember, God does offer His great salvation freely to all who will call on His name in humility. He turns away n rebuffs none to humble themselves to go after Christ His only provision for our salvation.