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John 3:19, "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil."
In the above passage, Jesus says those who believe in Him are saved, but those who reject Him are damned, and said they are damned because the light came into the world, and that those who reject Him do so because they love darkness and deeds that are evil.
There’s nothing in this passage that precludes their love of darkness from being their own freewill choice. Calvinism infers their election dogma into the text, which is called eisegesis.
John 3:27, "John answered and said, 'A man can receive nothing, unless it has been given him from heaven.'"
1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
John 6:44, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day."
John 6:65, "And He was saying, ‘For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.’"
Joh 12:32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.
John 8:34, "Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin."
And slaves want to be set free, and will take freedom when it is offered to them. This in no way proves inability to accept freedom (the gospel) when offered to them
Romans 3:10-12, "as it is written, ‘There is none righteous, not even one; 11 There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; 12 All have turned aside, together they have become useless. There is none who does good, there is not even one.’"
Jeremiah 29:13 says that when you seek me, you will find me, when you seek me with all your heart.
Romans 6:20, "For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness."
Slaves have the free will to desire to escape slavery, and will take freedom when offered to them thus this passage doesn’t prove inability to receive the gospel
Romans 8:7, "because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so."
In Romans 8, Paul is warning Christians about letting their flesh rule them, instead of walking in the spirit - if they follow their flesh they will die, spiritually.
This in no way means that the unsaved can’t be drawn by Jesus, John 12:32, or respond to the faith given them by hearing the word of God, Romans 10:17
1 Corinthians 2:14, "But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised."
That’s why the Holy Spirit gives us faith when we hear the gospel, Romans 10:17 and why Jesus draws all men unto Him, John 12:32 - we can’t give ourselves faith or draw ourselves unto Christ, but it’s done for ALL MEN by Jesus and by the Holy Spirit for all who hear the gospel preached.
Ephesians 2:1, "And you were dead in your trespasses and sins."
This is the fundamental error of Calvinism - spiritual death means being spiritually separated from God - but they equate spiritual separation from Gods presence, with physical death of the body, so. claim that like a dead body that can’t THINK, they have total inability to understand or believe the gospel.
Ephesians 2:3, "Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest."
This says nothing about total inability to respond to the gospel and be saved from Gods wrath and spiritually reborn to new life that eschews the desires of the flesh.
God must enable man to come to Him. It is the work of God !
John 1:12-13, "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even 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."
It’s the will of God that those who believe in Him and receive Jesus will be saved, and born again.
The plan of salvation is Gods idea and will, not mans idea.
This in no way proves God predetermined salvation of some by name, and reprobation of the rest of the world
John 1:11 tells us that “Jesus came FOR HIS OWN, the elect nation of Israel, BUT THEY RECEIVED HIM NOT”.
Faith comes from hearing Gods word, Romans 10:17, then we have freewill to receive Jesus, John 1:12, or reject Jesus as His own elect did John 1:11, which Stephen said they did, because they RESIST THE HOLY SPIRIT:
Act 7:51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.
Act 7:52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered,
That Gods own elect can resist the Holy Spirit, even reject Jesus to the point of killing Him, is fatal to Calvinist dogma.
John 6:28-29, "Therefore they said to Him, 'What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?' 29 Jesus answered and said to them, 'This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.'"
And faith comes by hearing the word of God, Romans 10:17 - not from being regenerated first as one of the lucky few elect.
Ephesians 1:5, "He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will."
Very true. God predetermined that those who choose to receive Jesus will become the adopted children of God, John 1:12. No one told God to do have the plan of salvation for us, it came solely from His will.
men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil."[/QUOTE]t
I answered many of the reformed doctrine misinterpretation of scriptures, above, and I’m going to send it, because I almost lost the page with my answers twice.
Since scripture is ridiculously clear that elect Israel disproved reformed election dogma, by refusing irresistible grace and unconditional election, by resisting the Holy Spirit, rejecting their Messiah and savior to the point of killing Him - then either there is a very serious contradiction in the Bible, or Calvinist proof texts are wrong.
They are wrong.