The efficaciousness of the proclaimed Word of God to everyone everywhere.

[Alkaline_9.5]

Romans 1 says in the day of judgment no one will be able to stand before God and say to Him, "you gave me no evidence of your existence." According to God, His creation is evidence of His existence.


You're deceiving yourself. Everyone who hears the Gospel has the opportunity to make a choice regarding Christ. Those whose Father is God, believe. Those whose Father is Satan, reject -- THEY DON'T WANT GOD -- scripture is not hard to understand on that. It's quite clear.


Nonsense. That they suppress the truth of the existence of God IN UNRIGHTEOUSNESS, tells me they know God exists. The idea in that is that the truth of God's existence is like a heavy spring always exerting the pressure of His existence against the creature requiring the creature to be always exerting pressure against the truth. But how much truth? According to Romans 1, not enough to convince them to believe, but enough to convict them for their unbelief. And I say to you, God has the right to reveal to one as much truth as He chooses to reveal and to withhold the rest, and you cannot say to God, "what have you done?!" (Daniel 4:35).

My urging to you is, get with God's program, or you run the risk of perishing for eternity.


You're clearly not a prophet, Rockson. Get with the program. God has given us enough information about Him and His plan(s) to convict us if we don't.

Same to @Christian, @Synergy, @cadwell, @LeeH, @PeanutGallery, et. al.

God is not judging all the same for all are not the same? It sounds like He is a God of fairness.

"Jesus said, “But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more” (Luke 12:48).

The Bible teaches that people are going to be held accountable for what they have been given. If they have been entrusted much talents (such as material wealth, time, education, health, etc.), they are to use them for the glory of God and the benefit of others.

If a person makes the most of the few opportunities he has been given, God will give him even greater opportunities. “For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away” (Matthew 25:29). If talents are not used, it is only natural that they be removed."

What does “to whom much is given, from him much will be required” mean?​

 

[Alkaline_9.5]

You cite a scripture about the mind set on the flesh, and you make statements about what hapeens as a result of that. What you are ignoring in that passage is the word "set." Your will sets your mind on the flesh or on the spirit. When your will sets your mind on the flesh then during that time, all that results is of the flesh. But nothing in the verses teaches that your will is unable to set the mind where you choose.

The truth of this is borne out in every day experience, but I am not sure everyone notices as much. Could it be that according to our faith, and the amount of talents (Matthew 25) and kinds of talents (Matthew 25) given to each person is according to how much they might notice how they are and what they choose each day and minute.

 

[Simpletruther]

I said it has dual meaning.

But the explanation only gives 1 meaning.

 

[Christian]

Perhaps very true. I'll forgive them though. I'm reminded of the King story who forgave a servant a great debt. Then he went to one he knew who owed him a debt and refused to forgive him and didn't and I sure don't want to be such a one. I have a debt they have one too, we all want to be forgiven. Mt 18:21

My greatest thought is having a concern as to whether people here and on all other web sites discussing theological matters on all sides is the question do they really and truly even KNOW God. Or do they just know a lot about God and there's a big difference between the two. And I'm not just talking about the bantering back and forth with the Calvinism, Non-Calvinism issue but all things theological. One can be an expert at articulating just what things like the hypostatic union mean...but do they KNOW God themselves. Do they have fellowship with him in the Spirit? I can't think of anything more terrifying and sad then to see religionists who think they were saved and in right standing with God because of mentally agreeing with a doctrine and then have them hear at the ends of life's journey, "I never knew you....Depart...." Oh my! Such would not of course be God's fault for such a one was being presumptuous along the way throwing caution to the wind just assuming things but as I say Oh my!

Signs to look for. Is one hearing God's voice and I don't mean an audible voice but you know that you know God is leading. Also do you receive reproof and yes rebuke from the Lord? That's not a bad thing but a good thing. Hebrews 12 :6 says if you don't have that you better be concerned.

Without certain things you cannot see God. I recall being a Christian in the 70's you would hear something repeated no end. "...without holiness no man shall see the Lord...without holiness no man shall see the Lord!" over and over and over. But that's not the only thing Heb 12:14 stated! Here's what it said,

"Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: ( and he added) Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled...."

The problem? Many can become uncharitable with others being unkind and callous and deceive themselves into thinking that's OK. Is it though? God puts following peace FIRST. If one's paradigm is to have the right doctrine and one doesn't add with it being harmless as a dove what's the concern one should have? Perhaps that they will not see the Lord? Even though one's right and mentally agree with certain doctrines? Yes. Another sign of one having the Spirit flowing through their lives? Love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance....Does that mean we're all perfect? Nope. I certainly know I'm not. The question is though what's the pattern of a person? All may fall into something in a moment of weakness BUT what is their continual patten? Is it the flesh or the Spirit? Galatians likewise talks about what the fruits of the flesh are when it comes to unpeaceful things....hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife,

Now here's something that I wonder if the world of angels just marvel about. It's one thing to see the people walk in the flesh as it comes to sensualistic things. Darkness and evil for sure but to use the actual revelation of God to be a launch pad to fulfill the lusts of the flesh and really and truly be walking in hatred, wrath and strife........again...My, my, my, my, my! One may deny they're doing this but is God convinced? A red flag of warning God says he will not be mocked. We will reap what we sow. Food for thought for all of us. What is our pattern? I think we all better consider it. PEACE.

It’s the million dollar question. You will know them by their fruits . Amen

The difference between the head and the heart is 18 inches the difference between heaven and hell . Knowledge vs wisdom - what one does with it and applying it to life . Pharisees vs publican . It’s all over scripture hence the warnings everywhere written to believers .

 

[Alexander the adequate]

Actually, the other poster was right on not fantasizing anything. What you'd call non-regenerated do have the capacity to set their minds on the flesh or spirit. Romans 1 clearly confirms the unsaved CAN set their minds on the flesh or the Spirit. There you see it's said of cultures which set their minds on the flesh when they could have set them on the Spirit. They suppressed the truth. God did not want them to do that. He said they would be without excuse for doing so. I'd kindly suggest all Calvinists need to mull this over and over in their minds the words, "without excuse" or "with excuse" Without Excuse or With Excuse. Give that continual thought. Don't cast it away as being insignificant. It is significant and very much so!

Can someone HAVE EXCUSE potentially before God? If they couldn't have excuse potentially under certain circumstances, then God wouldn't have used the term. I can't imagine how a Calvinist can believe that if a sinner had to have God regenerate him in order for him to set his mind on the Spirit how they can say the sinner wouldn't HAVE EXCUSE if they didn't. They would have excuse! How could they not? If they were born into this world, NOT THEIR FAULT, unless someone would want to strangely claim it was their fault, (not sure how you could ever do that) but with not even an option to set their mind on the Spirit then that would be an excuse not to receive judgment.

Say what one will but this is the basic foundation of what justice is. They would have excuse. Worldly folk deny this saying the revealed creation Rom 1:20 doesn't prove anything. Doesn't matter what they claim. God says without excuse. They had the ability to have chosen to set their mind on the Spirit and NOT to have suppressed the knowledge of God they had. Now to Calvinists step back and see where your doctrine has taken you. You're actually claiming they didn't have the capacity not to suppress the truth. To even say they didn't have such a capacity you really have no excuse to say that. You may think and claim that you do but God has already defined it. NO you don't. Coming to see this insight I'd be leaving Calvinistic thinking immediately. Staying in such I'd feel I was fighting and resisting the clear statements of God. Consider this food for thought.

yes. well stated

 

[Alexander the adequate]

You're making a disaster of Scripture by combining texts, and in doing so you are destroying contextual distinctions and meanings. Then you arrive at fallacious conclusions.

But, then again, most of what you are saying isn't actually Scripture at all, it's your take on it, and the texts don't say or mean what you're conveying.

That hermeneutic you've just displayed is a failure to implement 2 Timothy 2:15. To the extreme.

Instead of attempting to get "Calvinists" to follow your erroneous conclusions and "mull" over your erroneous post, perhaps you should;

1. Stop abusing Scripture by misquoting it?

2 Accurately represent Scripture?

3. Be concerned more about what you have done here instead of worrying about "Calvinists?"

this post is empty of anything resembling proof, it is just unsupported accusations

 

[Howie]

I said it has dual meaning.

The idea that scripture is polyvalent -- it's a hermeneutic that allows one to make Scripture say whatever one wants Scripture to say -- it's a favorite of Roman Catholicism.