John G. Reisinger

Biblical Fact No. 1

God, in eternity, sovereignly chose some sinners to salvation, and this choice was not based on anything, including foreseen faith, in man. Biblical proof:

…God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation…(2 Thess. 2:13).

…the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand…(Rom. 9:11).

Biblical Fact No. 2

God, in time, sent his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, into the world to make certain the salvation of the same some sinners who had been sovereignly chosen. Christ came as the Shepherd of the sheep (not sheep and goats) who had been given to him by the Father. Our Lord Jesus Christ actually secured, through his righteous life and obedient death, the complete and certain redemption of every one of the same some sinners, or sheep, given to him by the Father. Christ lived and died for "all those given him," and all of those for whom he died will be, yea they must be, saved. Biblical proof:

I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep (John 10:11).

…I lay down my life for the sheep (John 10:15).

…other sheep I have… them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice…(John 10:16).

…the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name…(John 10:3).

As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him… I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine (John 17:2, 9).

Biblical Fact No. 3

The Holy Spirit of God, through the preaching of the gospel, regenerates every one of the same some sinners whom the Father chose and for whom Christ died. Dead sinners are quickened, made alive, given spiritual life, and enabled to repent and believe the gospel and thus be saved entirely "by grace through faith." Biblical proof:

…when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace (Acts 18:27).

And you hath he quickened, who were dead… (Eph. 2:1).

Not by works of righteousness… but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost… (Titus 3:5).

Biblical Fact No. 4

Nothing in time or eternity, no power in heaven or earth, no person (including the devil) or 'anything' (including the will of man), can or will frustrate the plan of God's salvation for his elect people as outlined above. The sovereign purpose and work of the triune God will be accomplished. The Holy Spirit will apply the salvation purchased by the Son to all whom the Father elected to salvation. Biblical proof:

He is of one mind [purpose], and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth (Job 23:13).

…I blessed the most High, and I praised and honored him that liveth forever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from generation to generation: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou (Daniel 4:34, 35)?

Therefore hath he mercy on whom He will,…and whom He will hardeneth (Rom. 9:18).

And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day (John 6:39-NIV).

Biblical Fact No. 5

The Bible commands us to preach the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ to every person, or all men without either distinction or exception. Biblical proof:

…Go into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15).

Biblical Fact No. 6

The gospel message that is to be declared to all men is to include the duty, necessity, and responsibility of all men to repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Biblical proof:

And [he] said… that repentance…should be preached in his name among all nations… (Luke 24:46, 47).

…God…now commandeth all men every where to repent (Acts 17:30, 31).

And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely (Rev. 22:17).

Biblical Fact No. 7

The gospel message, in addition to repentance and faith, must also include the promise of complete forgiveness of sins and total acceptance with God to every person who truly repents and believes the gospel. Biblical proof:

…preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned (Mark 16: 15, 16).

…repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations…(Luke 24:47).

Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by him all that believe are justified…(Acts 13: 38, 39).

All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out (John 6:37).

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not (Matt. 23:37)!

Conclusions drawn from these Biblical Facts

One: Although I cannot say "God loves all men the same" because I know the Bible clearly teaches that he loves only his elect in the way of redemption, yet I dare not fail to say that God, in his word, pleads with all men to repent and believe the gospel. God treats all men as rational, responsible creatures that he himself has created. He emphatically, sincerely, continually, and earnestly warns them of their plight and entreats them to turn to him and live.

Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel (Ezek. 33:11)?

I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts (Isa. 65:2).

Two: Although I cannot say "Christ died and paid for all men's sins" because God's Word emphatically teaches the biblical fact of Particular Redemption, yet I must hold up Christ before every sinner and assure that sinner that everything he, or any other sinner, needs is to be found in Christ the Lord. I can, and must, tell every sinner about the free and complete salvation in the gospel that is promised to all who receive Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Three: I cannot tell lost men that they can (have the power or ability) repent and believe because the Scriptures clearly state that man is totally unable to either repent or believe before he is regenerated by the Holy Spirit. However, I must obey my Master and tell dead sinners that they must repent and believe or else they will be justly condemned to hell for their unbelief. I must go further and tell them that the whole blame for both their need of forgiveness and their unwillingness and inability to desire forgiveness is all their own fault and that God can in no way be blamed for either their sin or their destruction.

Four: I cannot tell men that "God has done all he can possibly do and it is now entirely up to the sinner" because the Bible clearly teaches that God can, and does, open the heart of any person whom he chooses and sovereignly and effectually enables to trust Christ. Likewise, I cannot say "God sincerely hopes that all men will somehow 'give him a chance' to save them," or that he has done all he can do to make that possible. The Bible clearly shows that God does for his elect alone what he neither purposes nor performs for the non-elect, yet I must still tell all men that God's message to them, which I am responsible to preach and they are responsible to believe, is that he sincerely promises forgiveness to every sinner who truly desires it. I must go further and declare that it is God's revealed will that he has no pleasure (Ezek. 33:11) in the death of the wicked but contrary-wise he does have pleasure in forgiving them when they turn to him in faith.

Five: Although I cannot understand how the absolutely unchangeable decrees of God (which cannot in any way be frustrated by anyone) and the message of God through the law and the gospel (which at times appear, because of our finiteness, to be frustrated by men) are to be reconciled when they seem to contradict each other, yet I must not deny either of these biblical facts or fail to declare them both with equal force and clarity.

Application of these Biblical Facts

This short article has dealt with a subject that has caused problems for many people. It has split Calvinistic denominations and has caused some men who loved the Doctrines of Grace to be called Arminians and other men to be called hyper-Calvinists. The real reason for the confusion concerns the preaching and application of the gospel to lost sinners. More specifically, it concerns the right interpretation and proclamation of texts of Scripture such as Ezekiel 33:11.

We have neither the ability nor the desire to straighten out 'hypers' of any kind on either side. Hypers of any kind are zealots and zealots cannot be affected by arguments and truth. However, we do want to try and be helpful to God's people. It is for this reason that we print articles that give a balance to all of the biblical facts. We want to try to keep people from becoming lop-sided.

Now, as I said, I am not trying to straighten out anyone. In a later issue of Sound of Grace, we hope to show that both the Arminian objection to Particular Redemption, and the hyper-Calvinistic objection to Universal Proclamation of the gospel are groundless. Our primary intention here is to show how clearly the Bible sets forth both sides of biblical truth.

God used the following text in my life in the area under discussion as well as in other areas:

The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law (Deut. 29:29).

God's decrees, or secret purposes, are sure and final, but, as the text says, they belong to God alone. It gives me comfort to know the decrees are in place and nothing can change them. However, since it is impossible for me to see what God has decreed, they have nothing to do with my rule of life. They are not given to me. They belong to God alone. The secret things are not revealed to us and therefore can give us no direction in what to do or not to do. You and I, and all men, are responsible to the things that are revealed, namely, the Words of God written in the sixty-six books of the Bible. The text specifically says the revealed things are given to us and to our children that we may clearly understand his will for us.

And lastly, God has revealed enough that we, and all men, are left without excuse for any failure to believe, obey, and proclaim his whole Word of truth. His secret will, or decrees, should shut our mouth in humility and hope, and his revealed will, the Scriptures, should open our mouth in praise and proclamation of the gospel!

Copyright 2004 John G. Reisinger