BIBLE STUDY MANUALS: ELECT, ELECTION, DECREES, FOREORDINATION, FOREKNOWLEDGE, PREDESTINATION, CALLED

ELECTION AND RELATED DOCTRINES

I) FOREORDINATION = THE OVERALL PLAN FOR THE UNIVERSE WHICH IS DETERMINED BEFOREHAND BY GOD

God foreordained, i.e., determined His plan for the universe in every minute detail beforehand - not as an ongoing, evolving, reactionary plan, to be adjusted one way or another depending upon circumstances and man's volition. Indeed, all circumstances in every minute detail including the free will choices of every man have occurred and will occur as part of God's foreordained plan for the universe.

Compare notes on Abrahamic Covenant

[J. Dwight Pentecost in his book, "Things Which Become Sound Doctrine," Revell Publishing, Westwood, N.J., 1965, pp. 135-6]:

Foreordination = "To determine, to fix beforehand...

...Within this word is the thought that God possesses the ability to provide, with infinite precision, the things necessary for the ongoing of this universe which He has created. God planned all the details before the work of creation. God did not create and then sit down to decide what He would do with what had been created. As a careful Architect, God planned the use to which each part of creation would be put, the use to which each member within creation would be put."

A) [Compare Eph 1:4-5, 11]:

(Eph 1:4) "For He [God the Father, (v. 3a)] chose us [believers, (v. 1)] in Him [i.e., to be in Christ - to be saved, (v. 3b)] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight."

[Pentecost, cont.]:

["This truth is presented to us in Ephesians 1:4 where the Apostle reminds us that God has chosen us in Him (that is, in Christ) before the foundation of the world...

God's purpose was determined previous to the actual act of creation....

God... was the Architect of a plan, (cf v. 11)."]

(v. 5) [In love, (v. 4c)] He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will.

(v. 11) In Him we were also chosen having been predestinated according to the plan of Him Who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will."

Notice that God indeed has a "plan" and He elects and predestines "everything according to [that] plan." He "works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will," not the will of man. So God's election of some "to be holy and blameless in His sight," for example, is not as a result of man's will or choice to believe in the gospel, [albeit each man did choose of his own volition to believe] but of God's will and purpose in accordance with His plan which never violates or intrudes upon the free will of an individual to choose to believe or not. This fact makes the plan of God - His sovereignty - Absolute, not dependant upon anything man may decide to do or not do. Yet the volition, the will of man is never violated at any point in His plan. Those that choose of their own volition to believe in His Son have been decreed by God to do just that. One who has not been chosen to believe, will choose to disbelieve out of ones own volition. If God has not chosen you to believe, you will never choose to believe. You will refuse to believe of your own volition throughout your life, no matter how well and how many times the gospel is presented to you - the natural state of man from conception.

[Pentecost, cont.]:

"In Ephesians 1:5, Paul tells us that God has worked all things 'according to the good pleasure of his will. Then, in verse 11... God's purpose was to glorify Himself... God... predetermines His purpose, His goal, His aim, and His end in creation, and then God brings into existence that program which will fulfill His purpose and aim. Paul makes this very clear in 1 Corinthians 2:7."

B) [Compare 1 Cor 2:7]:

"No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began."

[Pentecost, cont.]:

"From that verse we discover that foreordination has to do with the determining of a plan before the plan is put into operation."

II) DECREE = THE ACT BY WHICH GOD ESTABLISHED THE CERTAINTY OF WHAT HE FOREORDAINED

[Pentecost, op. cit., pp. 137-8]:

"[Decree is defined as] The act by which God established the certainty of what He has planned, or predetermined. By foreordination God determines what the program will be. By God's decree God establishes the certainty of that which He has foreordained....

A) [Compare Dan 11:36]:

"The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been determined [by God] must take place."

Just as a king decrees what he decrees not on the basis of what one of his subjects might think, but on the basis of what he, the king "pleases;"

in the same way, God decrees what He decrees not on the basis of what man might think, say or do, but on what God Himself pleases.

Furthermore, Daniel is recording the fact that God has issued a decree as to what His plan is and despite the king's will over his subjects, God's decree will certainly come to fulfillment, for Daniel says, 'for what has been determined [by God] must take place.'

B) [Compare Lk 22:22]:

"[Jesus said] 'The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed, but woe to that man who betrays Him.'

The word 'decreed' in this passage refers to God's decree by which God established what Jesus Christ would do during His earthly ministry in every detail - even with respect to Christ and all mankind's free will choices in those ancient times which determined our Lord's trials, crucifixion and where He was buried, and yet God got the outcome of all that He had determined in that decree.

C) [Compare Acts 2:23]:

"This Man, delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death."

Notice that God predetermines and as a result foreknows rather than foreknows then predetermines. And it was by God's "predetermined plan", i.e., His decree that godless men would choose of their own volition to put Him to death by nailing His Son, Jesus Christ to a cross - this evidently done without God forcing man's actions, never violating nor intruding upon man's volition at any time.

D) [Compare Acts 4:27-28]:

(Acts 4:27 NASB) "For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, Whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel.

(Acts 4:28 NASB) to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur."

[Pentecost, cont.]:

"God had foreordained a certain program, and then God had established the certainty and irreversibility of that program by issuing a decree as to what would take place in detail. The Apostle, proclaiming the facts concerning the death of Christ, points out that Christ's death was no accident, that Christ was not subjected, primarily, to the will of the Jews nor the will of the Gentiles, but that the Jew and the Gentiles were doing that which God - Who had foreordained the course of events - had settled and established by His decree would certainly come to pass. God in foreordination lays the plan and program; God, by His decree and His determinative counsel, establishes the certainty of that program," [including everything men would chose to do of their own volition and yet God gets the outcome He has determined establishing His sovereignty as Absolute, dependant upon no one!]

E) [Compare Lam 3:37-38]:

(v. 37) "Who can speak and have it happen if the Lord has not decreed it?

(v. 38) Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that both calamities and good things come?"

God is sovereign in all that occurs - the good and the bad. For example, those who of their own volition believe in Christ as Savior were decreed to believe of their own volition and those who reject Christ as Savior of their own volition were decreed to do just that of their own volition.

F) [Compare Acts 3:17-18]:

(Acts 3:17 NASB) "And now, brethren, [fellow Jews, (v. 12)] (I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did also.

(Acts 3:18 NASB) But the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets, that His Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled."

The strength of the argument for God's Absolute sovereignty herein is reinforced - that God decreed what would come to pass, announced it through the prophets and fulfilled it precisely as He decreed - including the free will choices of the men involved. All of this, nevertheless without violating or intruding upon the volition of man, even when egregious evil was done. There is nothing here that indicates that solely because of His omniscience, God knew what mankind would do and then announced through the prophets what would come to pass - leaving man in control of the sovereign decrees of God. This concept would then question the integrity of God decreeing something to come to pass only because it was what men will choose to do, leaving man in control of what God has decreed, and compelling God to support what man decides.

III) FOREKNOWLEDGE = WHAT GOD KNOWS WITH CERTAINTY WILL COME TO PASS BECAUSE HE HAS DECREED IT AND WILL SEE TO IT THAT IT IS FULFILLED, I.E., THAT WHICH IS ACCORDING TO THE ELECTION OF GOD BEING STRICTLY BY HIS GRACE AND AS FULFILLED THROUGH HIM, AND YET NEVER VIOLATING OR INTRUDING UPON THE VOLITION OF MEN

(Ro 10:20 NIV) "And Isaiah boldly says, 'I was found by those who did not seek me; I revealed Myself to those who did not ask for Me.' [Isa 65:1] (Ro 10:21 NIV) But concerning Israel he says, 'All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.' [Isa 65:2] (Ro 11:1 NKJV) "I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. (Ro 11:2 NKJV) God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying, (Ro 11:3 NKJV) 'LORD, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life'? (Ro 11:4 NKJV) But what does the divine response say to him? 'I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.' [1 Kgs 19:18] (Ro 11:5 NKJV) Even so then, at this present time there [has been] a remnant according to the election of grace" =

From the phrase "God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew" in Ro 11:2 we can determine by the references to Isaiah 65, (Ro 10:20-21) and to 1 Kgs 19, (Ro 11:4), that the meaning of foreknowledge is defined by Paul as a knowledge beforehand of events which are a result of God's decree - His plan and His instituting of that plan even by direct intervention in order to insure its outcome, without ever violating or intruding upon the volition of any man. The passages indicate that a remnant of ancient Israelites would be preserved by the LORD so that His promise of a future generation of Israelites to occupy the promised land in the new heavens and the new earth, (v. 17), as the LORD's chosen people would be fulfilled, (cf. Isa 65:8-9, 17-18). Notice that during Elijah's time, the LORD reserved for Himself seven thousand men who had not bowed the knee to Baal.

Having said that, Paul declares in Romans 11:5 that in the same way that the LORD foreknew the future generation of Israelites to be His chosen people - to be preserved for eternity to inherit the promised land, "so at this present time [i.e., in this present age] there [has been] a remnant of individuals [from all peoples] according to the election of grace" who will likewise be preserved for eternity. Notice that God has specifically elected, (chosen), by grace, i.e., by unmerited favor - by nothing that they would do themselves - a number of individuals to be a remnant destined for eternal life. For an individual to be part of a remnant by the election of the grace of the LORD evidently means that the LORD has foreknown him because He has chosen him by decree. This corroborates that God is proactive in what He foreknows will occur to the extent that He decrees, hence predestinates that occurrence and directly intervenes to make it come to pass. So individuals who make the specific choice of trusting in the gospel of their own volition are decreed to do just that and God intervenes to see that this comes to pass without ever violating or intruding upon the volition of any man. Hence those that believe in the gospel of their own volition are foreknown by the LORD to be a remnant destined to be preserved unto eternal life.

[Pentecost, op. cit., pp. 138-9]:

"...Foreknowledge, as used in Scripture, refers to what God knows with certainty will come to pass because He has decreed that event. God knows all things, not only because He is an omniscient God, but because God by His decree has settled and established what will come to pass in fulfillment of His predetermined program. Foreknowledge, then, is the result of God's foreordination, or God's decree, of what would take place. God foreknows, not only what will take place, but the people who will be instruments in the fulfillment of His plan and His program. Foreknowledge has to do not only with what will take place but who will be included within the scope of God's program."

A) The LORD Decreed, Hence Foreknew And Saw To It That A Remnant Of Ancient Israelites Would Be Preserved So That His Decree Hence His Foreknowledge - His Unilateral Covenant With Abraham - Of A Future Generation Of Israelites To Occupy The Promised Land In The Eternal Kingdom Of God - The New Heavens And The New Earth - As His Chosen People Forever Would Be Fulfilled

1) [Compare Isa 65:8-9, 15-18]:

(Isa 65:8 NIV) This is what the LORD says: "As when juice is still found in a cluster of grapes and men say, 'Don't destroy it, there is yet some good in it,' so will I do in behalf of My servants; I will not destroy them all.

(Isa 65:9 NIV) I will bring forth descendants from Jacob, and from Judah those who will possess My mountains; My chosen people will inherit them, and there will My servants live.

[Note the implication here that the LORD will not destroy all of the Israelites at any time in history so that in the future He can "bring forth descendants from Jacob, and from Judah those who will possess [His] mountains; [His] chosen people will inherit them, and there will [His] servants live [forever]," with a view to the eternal kingdom. Hence all generations of Israel are in view relative to never being totally destroyed so that the those of the people of Israel who are believers will inherit the the eternal kingdom]

(Isa 65:15 NIV) You will leave your name to My chosen ones as a curse; the Sovereign LORD will put you to death, but to his servants he will give another name.

(Isa 65:16 NIV) Whoever invokes a blessing in the land will do so by the God of truth; he who takes an oath in the land will swear by the God of truth. For the past troubles will be forgotten and hidden from My eyes.

(Isa 65:17 NIV) Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.

(Isa 65:18 NIV) But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy.' "

On the one hand the LORD revealed Himself to those who were not Israelites, (i.e., Gentiles), who neither asked for Him nor sought Him. In spite of the fact that they did not call on His name, He said to them 'Here am I, here am I', (Isa 65:1). On the other hand, all day long the LORD had held out His hands to generations of ancient Israelites but they were obstinate in their unfaithfulness, pursuing their own evil imaginations in disobedience to His commands to their own destruction, (Isa 65:11-12). So the LORD saw to it that a remnant of ancient Israelites would be preserved so that His decree and promise of a future generation of Israelites to occupy the promised land in the new heavens and the new earth, (v. 17), as His chosen people forever would be fulfilled, (cf. Isa 65:8-9, 17-18). So the LORD intervenes so that a remnant of Israelites are not destroyed. Hence descendants of Israel will inherit the promised land and have eternal life in the new heavens and the new earth which He had decreed, hence foreknew and unilaterally ratified as a covenant with Abraham to fulfill all the stipulated conditions therein .

2) [Compare 1 Kgs 19:1-18]:

(1 Kgs 19:1 NIV) "Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword.

(1 Kgs 19:2 NIV) So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, 'May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.'

(1 Kgs 19:3 NIV) Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there,

(1 Kgs 19:4 NIV) while he himself went a day's journey into the desert. He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. 'I have had enough, LORD,' he said. 'Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.'

(1 Kgs 19:5 NIV) Then he lay down under the tree and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, 'Get up and eat.'

(1 Kgs 19:6 NIV) He looked around, and there by his head was a cake of bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.

(1 Kgs 19:7 NIV) The angel of the LORD came back a second time and touched him and said, 'Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.'

(1 Kgs 19:8 NIV) So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.

[Notice the LORD's intervention here with food, drink, protection and enablement to travel such a long journey in forty days and forty nights]

(1 Kgs 19:9 NIV) There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the LORD came to him: 'What are you doing here, Elijah?'

(1 Kgs 19:10 NIV) He replied, 'I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.'

(1 Kgs 19:11 NIV) The LORD said, 'Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.' Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake.

(1 Kgs 19:12 NIV) After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.

(1 Kgs 19:13 NIV) When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, 'What are you doing here, Elijah?'

(1 Kgs 19:14 NIV) He replied, 'I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.'

(1 Kgs 19:15 NIV) The LORD said to him, 'Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram.

(1 Kgs 19:16 NIV) Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet.

(1 Kgs 19:17 NIV) Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu.

(1 Kgs 19:18 NIV) Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel - all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and all whose mouths have not kissed him.' "

Notice in 1 Kgs 19:16-18, that the intent and intervention of the LORD was to fulfill His purposes as He has decreed, hence He had foreknown those purposes. For example, He declared and appointed Hazael, Jehu and Elisha to put to death Elijah's enemies.

Contrary to Elijah's statement that he was no better than past generations of his unfaithful Israelite ancestors, (1 Kgs 19:14), and deserved to die, (1 Kgs 19:4); God intervened to protect and preserve him from temporal destruction. Verse 19:18 in 1 Kings stipulates that as well as preserving Elijah, the LORD had reserved seven thousand in Israel. As Elijah had been faithful to the LORD so had all of the seven thousand whose knees had not bowed down to, nor 'kissed' Baal, implying the preservation of a remnant of believers as a pattern of the LORD's election and sovereignty throughout all generations of Israel. Intrinsic in the phrase, "I have reserved" is the implication that the LORD had seen to it that this reservation would come about successfully, evidently via the same kind of intervention that the LORD made with Elijah to preserve his life and see to it that His decrees would be fulfilled, (cf 1 Kgs 19:5-18). It is thus implied that the LORD's pattern is to preserve a remnant of believers throughout all generations.

B) Just As A Remnant Of Israelites Throughout History Was Foreknown By Decree Of The Lord To Be Preserved For All Eternity Outside Of Personal Merit; So At The Present Time A Remnant Of All Peoples Had Been Decreed, Hence Foreknown And Chosen By God According To The Election Of Grace = The Choice Of God Without Regard To Personal Merit And Not Because He Knew They Would Choose To Believe, But Because He Decreed It

(Ro 11:1 NKJV) "I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. (Ro 11:2 NKJV) God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying, (Ro 11:3 NKJV) 'LORD, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life'? (Ro 11:4 NKJV) But what does the divine response say to him? 'I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.' [1 Kgs 19:18] (Ro 11:5 NKJV) Even so then, at this present time there ["gegonen" = has been] a remnant according to the election of grace" =

Paul declares that in the same way that the LORD foreknew the Israelites to be His chosen people - always to have a remnant of them to be preserved through tribulation against extinction by Him throughout the ages and then for all eternity - "so at this present time there ["gegonen" = has been] a remnant of individuals from the population of all mankind according to the election of grace" who will likewise be preserved through tribulation throughout the ages so that there will always be a remnant of believers in every age and then for all eternity. Notice that God foreknew via His decrees individuals who were specifically chosen by His grace, i.e., by unmerited favor, i.e., by nothing that they would do themselves, from the population of all mankind to be a remnant to be destined for eternal life, (Ro 11:5), without violating or intruding upon any man's volition at any time. So for an individual to be part of a remnant by the election of the grace of the LORD evidently means that the LORD has foreknown him, in the sense of having determined beforehand that individual's eternal destiny, and thereby He has decreed that individual's destiny to choose of his own volition to exercise a moment of faith in His Son for eternal life. This indicates that God is proactive in what He foreknows / determines beforehand what will occur to the extent that He decrees, hence predestinates everything that occurs, including His divine intervention. So individuals who make the specific choice of trusting alone in Jesus Christ alone unto eternal life of their own volition have been decreed to do just that. Hence they are foreknown by decree of the LORD to be a remnant destined for certainty to be preserved from temporal destruction and unto eternal life because He will see to it that this will be accomplished, never violating nor intruding upon man's volition at any time.

C) God Foreknew / Determined Beforehand Who Would Choose To Believe In And Become Conformed To The Image Of His Son Because He Predestined It. He Decreed It To Occur So That His Son Might Be The Righteous Firstborn Among Many Righteous Brothers

(Ro 8:28 YLT) "And we have known that to those loving God all things do work together for [godly] good, to those who are called according to [His] purpose. (Ro 8:29 NKJV) For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren" =

(Ro 8:29 Greek) "hoti ........hous ...proegnO .........kai .proOrisen
.........................."Because ...whom .He foreknew, .also He predestined

summorphous tEs eikonos tou .....huiou autou eis to ...einai .auton
conformed to .the .image ...of the Son ....His, ...for the .to be Him

prOtotokon en ........pollois adelphois"
firstborn .....among many ..brothers."

God foreknew / determined beforehand who would choose to believe in and become conformed to the image of His Son because He predestined it.

[Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, G & C Merriam Co, Springfield, MA, 1980, p. 898]:

To predestine and to predestinate:

"to destine, decree, determine, appoint, or settle beforehand, to predestinate."

where decree means, [op. cit., p. 292]:

"1: An order usually having the force of law. 2. b. a foreordaining will"

where foreordain means, [op. cit., p. 446]:

"To dispose or appoint in advance. Predestine"

So God decreed / predestined it to occur so that His Son might be the righteous firstborn among many righteous brothers. The Greek word "proegnO" in the phrase "hoti hous proegnO kai proOrisen summorphous tEs eikonos tou huiou" rendered in the NKJV "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son" in verse 8:29 refers to God knowing beforehand who would become children of God, i.e., believers and be conformed to the image of His Son, i.e., with the promise of a perfectly righteous, redeemed, resurrection body. The phrase "He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son," in verse 8:29 contains the Greek word "proOrisen" in the phrase literally "Because whom He [God] foreknew He predestined" where proOrisen means "He [God] predestined." It signifies that the reason why God foreknew whom would become believers and become conformed to the image of His Son was that God predestined this result, i.e., He decreed it to come to pass. To decree something is to be sovereign in its outcome.

That is the significance of the word "proOrisen." So verse 8:29 indicates that God's foreknowledge was as a result of God's predestination - His predetermination of those who would choose to become believers, hence become children of God with the predestinated result of becoming conformed to the image of His Son. This conforming includes not only being credited with but actually experiencing a righteousness from God as the Son is righteous so that the Son might be the firstborn Righteous One among many righteous brethren. So those who would choose to become, of their own volition, children of God born of God, even before they choose to believe in Jesus Christ unto eternal redemption and eternal life, were called / chosen / elected to that destiny for God's purpose, (v. 8:28).

This is then explained further in verse 8:29: God foreknew, i.e., knew beforehand that the children of God would believe and be justified, (cf. 3:21-24; 6:3, 8:1, 14, 21), because God predestined, i.e., predetermined beforehand that these individuals would choose of their own free will to believe and become children of God unto eternal life and be conformed to the image of His Son.

D) God Did Not Elect Certain Individuals On Account Of His Omniscience - Of Knowing Beforehand - That They Would Accept Christ As Savior, But On Account Of His Predestination - His Decree That They Would Accept Christ As Savior And Yet Without Ever Violating Or Intruding Upon The Volition Of Men

[Pentecost, cont.]:

"A widely-held interpretation is that God has elected those whom He knows will accept Christ as Personal Savior. [in the sense that God is dependent upon whatever man will choose to do]. This is an erroneous interpretation, for if God elected those whom He knew beforehand would accept Him as Savior then God has not foreordained, God has not decreed, God has not foreknown; but rather, God has exercised His omniscience, and has limited Himself by the will of man. God is no longer a sovereign God if He elects those whom He knew would accept Him as a Savior, those whom would put faith in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. God is then subject to the whims of the human will, and God cannot act upon, nor go beyond, the limits of the human will. Rather, what the Apostle writes in Romans 8:29 is the fact that God knew whom would be included in His plan because He has foreordained and decreed that they would be included.

We find the same truth is presented in 1 Peter 1:2 where Peter says that we were chosen, i.e., elect according to the foreknowledge of God...

1) [1 Pet 1:1-3]:

(1 Pet 1:1 NASB) "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who reside as aliens, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, who are chosen

(1 Pet 1:2 NASB) according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure."

(1 Pet 1:3 NASB) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,"

Peter teaches that we were 'elect according to the foreknowledge of God...' The election is in keeping with the foreknowledge, not because of the foreknowledge, or based upon the foreknowledge. Foreknowledge says nothing of what God knew the individual would do but foreknowledge has to do with what God knew He would do with men. God foreordained; that is, He drew the plan. God, by His decree or by His determination, settled, solidified, and finalized the plan. Consequently, God in foreknowledge knows what He will do because of His foreordination and His decree," [all the while never violating nor intruding upon man's volition at any time.]

IV) ELECTION

Elect, chosen = Greek: "eklektos," (1 Pet 1:1-2), "kletois," (Ro 8:28), adjective, masc., refers to the chosen [ones] = the selected out ones = those who are appointed by God for a certain object or goal.

Election, choice = Greek: "eklogen," (Ro 11:5) noun, fem = the process of selecting out, choosing, appointing for a certain object or goal.

To Elect, to choose = Greek: "eklegomai," verb, (Eph 1:4: "exelexato," aorist tense, chosen) = to elect, to choose, to appoint for a certain object or goal.

A) (Ro 11:5) Just As A Remnant Of Israelites Throughout History Was Foreknown By Decree Of The Lord To Be Preserved For All Eternity Outside Of Personal Merit; So At The Present Time A Remnant Of All Peoples Had Been Decreed, Hence Foreknown And Chosen By God According To The Election Of Grace = The Choice Of God Without Regard To Personal Merit, Not Because He Knew They Would Choose To Believe, But Because He Decreed It

Paul declares that in the same way that the LORD foreknew the Israelites to be His chosen people - always to have a remnant of them to be preserved through tribulation against extinction by Him throughout the ages and then for all eternity - "so at this present time there ["gegonen" = has been] a remnant of individuals from the population of all mankind according to the election ["ekogEn"] of grace" who will likewise be preserved through tribulation throughout the ages so that there will always be a remnant of believers in every age and then for all eternity. Notice that God foreknew via His decrees individuals who were specifically chosen by His grace, i.e., by unmerited favor, i.e., by nothing that they would do themselves, from the population of all mankind to be a remnant to be destined for eternal life, (Ro 11:5), without violating or intruding upon any man's volition at any time. So for an individual to be part of a remnant by the election of the grace of the LORD evidently means that the LORD has foreknown him and thereby He has decreed that individual's destiny to choose to exercise faith in God's Son unto eternal life. This indicates that God is proactive in what He foreknows will occur to the extent that He decrees, hence predestinates everything that occurs. So individuals who make the specific choice of trusting alone in Jesus Christ alone unto eternal life of their own volition have been decreed to do just that. Hence they are foreknown by decree of the LORD to be a remnant destined for certainty to be preserved from temporal destruction and unto eternal life because He will see to it that this will be accomplished, never violating nor intruding upon man's volition at any time. So it is indeed true that God calls out some for the purpose of salvation and others He does not.

B) (Ro 8:28-29) God Foreknew Who Would Choose To Believe In And Become Conformed To The Image Of His Son Because He Predestined It. He Decreed It To Occur So That His Son Might Be The Righteous Firstborn Among Many Righteous Brothers

(Ro 8:29 Greek) "hoti ........hous ...proegnO .........kai .proOrisen
.........................."Because ...whom .He foreknew, .also He predestined

summorphous tEs eikonos tou .....huiou autou eis to ...einai .auton
conformed to .the .image ...of the Son ....His, ...for the .to be Him

prOtotokon en ........pollois adelphois"
firstborn .....among many ..brothers."

God foreknew who would choose to believe in and become conformed to the image of His Son because He predestined it.

[Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, G & C Merriam Co, Springfield, MA, 1980, p. 898]:

To predestine and to predestinate:

"to destine, decree, determine, appoint, or settle beforehand, to predestinate."

where decree means, [op. cit., p. 292]:

"1: An order usually having the force of law. 2. b. a foreordaining will"

where foreordain means, [op. cit., p. 446]:

"To dispose or appoint in advance. Predestine"

So God decreed it to occur so that His Son might be the righteous firstborn among many righteous brothers. The Greek word "proegnO" rendered "He foreknew" in the phrase "hoti hous proegnO kai proOrisen summorphous tEs eikonos tou huiou" rendered in the NKJV "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son" in verse 8:29 refers to God knowing beforehand who would become children of God, i.e., believers and be conformed to the image of His Son, i.e., with the promise of a perfectly righteous, redeemed, resurrection body. The phrase "He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son," in verse 8:29 contains the Greek word "proOrisen" rendered "predestined" in the phrase rendered "Because whom He [God] foreknew He predestined" where proOrisen means "He [God] predestined." It signifies that the reason why God foreknew whom would become believers and become conformed to the image of His Son was that God predestined this result, i.e., He decreed it to come to pass. To decree something is to be sovereign in its outcome.

That is the significance of the word "proOrisen." So verse 8:29 indicates that God's foreknowledge was as a result of God's predestination - His predetermination of those who would choose to become believers, hence become children of God with the predestinated result of becoming conformed to the image of His Son. This conforming includes experiencing a righteousness from God as the Son is righteous so that the Son might be the firstborn Righteous One among many righteous brethren. So those who became children of God, even before they chose to believe in Jesus Christ unto eternal redemption and eternal life, were called to God's purpose, (v. 8:28).

This is then explained further in verse 8:29: God knew beforehand that the children of God would believe and be justified, (cf. 3:21-24; 6:3, 8:1, 14, 21), because God predestined, i.e., predetermined beforehand that these individuals would choose of their own free will to believe and become children of God unto eternal life and be conformed to the image of His Son.

C) (Ro 8:28-29) God Did Not Elect Certain Individuals On Account Of Foreknowing That They Would Accept Christ As Savior But On Account Of His Decree That They Would Accept Christ As Savior And Yet Never Violating Or Intruding Upon The Volition Of Men

[Pentecost, cont.]:

"A widely-held interpretation is that God has elected those whom He knows will accept Christ as Personal Savior. This is an erroneous interpretation, for if God elected those whom He knew beforehand would accept Him as Savior then God has not foreordained, God has not decreed, God has not foreknown; but rather, God has exercised His omniscience, and has limited Himself by the will of man. God is no longer a sovereign God if He elects those whom He knew would accept Him as a Savior, those whom would put faith in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. God is then subject to the whims of the human will, and God cannot act upon, nor go beyond, the limits of the human will. Rather, what the Apostle writes in Romans 8:29 is the fact that God knew whom would be included in His plan because He has foreordained and decreed that they would be included.

We find the same truth is presented in 1 Peter 1:2 where Peter says that we were chosen, i.e., elect according to the foreknowledge of God...

1) [1 Pet 1:1-2]:

(1 Pet 1 KJV) "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia

(1 Pet 2 KJV) elect [Greek: eklektois, adj] according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy [has] begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."

D) (Eph 1:4) Author And Apostle Paul Praises / Blesses The God And Father Of Our Lord Jesus Christ On Behalf Of All The Saints For Having Bestowed Every Spiritual Blessing In The Heavenly Places Upon The Saints - The Ones Believing In Christ Jesus, For He Chose [Elected] Us In Him Before The Foundation Of The World, To Be Holy And Blameless In His Sight In Love

(Eph 1:3 NASB) "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who [did bless] us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, (Eph 1:4 HCSB) for He chose [elected] us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight [in love] =

Paul continues the long sentence of Eph 1:3-14:

Verse 3 reads

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who [did bless] us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,

[then verse 4 provides the first blessing]:

for He [God] chose [elected] us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight [in love].

God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who did bless "us" = saints, believing ones in Christ Jesus, (v. 1), with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, (v. 3). For He chose [elected] "us" before the foundation / before the creation of the world to be in Him with a view to "our" eternal destiny of being holy - set apart to be His possession and to be in "our" experience of being holy and without blame, i.e., to be without sin in His sight. And all of this was decreed to be done out of God's agapE / godly love for us. The phrase rendered "in Him" as well as the words "in Christ" in verse 3: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who [did bless] us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ," indicate that all of God's blessings are decreed before the creation of the world to come to those whom He chose [elected] to be "in Christ," literally "in the sphere of Christ," i.e., to belong to Him.

Every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ in view in Eph 1:3 will be bestowed because of the election of God: through the work of God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ which He decreed will come to pass.

1) [Compare Eph 1:11]:

(Eph 1:11 NKJV) "In Him also we have obtained an [eternal] inheritance, [having been] predestined according to the purpose of Him Who [is working] all things according to the counsel of His will."

These blessings will not occur because of anything believers do, might become or might persevere in. For God Himself has taken the initiative to provide salvation to them - before the creation of the world. It is His choosing - His election - based upon His grace, not upon man's merit, (cf. Eph 2:8-9). And the purpose of God's election is so that those whom He has chosen should be "holy and blameless in His sight" evidently to be transformed by God into holy and blameless creatures when they receive their promised eternal inheritance, (Eph 1:7-14). This is the God side of our salvation - God's choosing [electing] individuals, before the creation of the world, to be in Christ: "to be holy and blameless in His sight in love" - out of His agapE love for them. On the human side which is not immediately in view in this passage, (but will be in view in chapter 2), all individuals may and must exercise a moment of faith alone in Christ alone of their own free will to be saved unto eternal life and that alone, which will evidently corroborate in perfect agreement with God's election before the creation of the world: those whom God has chosen will all choose to believe in His Son; and those whom God has not chosen will all not choose to believe in His Son, albeit they will be given every opportunity to do so because God's Son has provided atonement for the sins of the whole world, (1 Jn 2:2), not just those whom He chose [elected].

2) [1 Pet 1:1-2]:

(1 Pet 1:1 KJV) "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia

(1 Pet 1:2 KJV) elect [Greek: eklektois, adj] according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy [has] begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."

Note that God's election is according to His foreknowledge - His plan for the universe which has been determined beforehand.

E) Election Is The Work Of God. It Is Not A Matter Of The Individual Electing God And Then God Electing Him In Response - And Neither God's Sovereignty Nor Man's Free Will Is Impugned

Just as the coach of a team chooses those on the team who are going to play in a particular game,
his choice being dependent upon his will and not on the will of those on his team - otherwise it's not his choice at all -

and his choice not restricting the free will choice of his chosen players to play in that game;

so in an infinitely greater way God elects those of mankind who are going to be provided with the gift of faith unto salvation,

His choice being dependent upon His plan and will; and not on the will of man - otherwise it is not God's choice at all -

and His choice not restricting the free will choice of His elect to believe in Christ as Savior.

If God's election were dependent upon man's choosing God first, then God's choice would not be His but man's, and God's sovereignty in this matter would be subjected to man's will.

Furthermore, just as a ballplayer's free will to choose to play the game is not overriden by the coach's choice for him to play - it's both, [in a perfect world]

in an infinitely greater way, man's free will to choose to believe is not overriden by God's choice for him to believe - it is both!

[Pentecost, op. cit., pp. 139-141]

[Election]"...means 'to call out.' It has to do with selection... Election is the sovereign work of God, according to His own purpose and will, predetermined by His foreordination, in which He selects those through whom the divine purpose will be fulfilled. We refer you again to Ephesians 1:4: "We were chosen, in Christ, before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him."

Election is the work of God. It is not a matter of the individual electing God, and then God electing him in response. We find this same truth presented in Romans where, concerning the national election of Israel, the divine principle in election was made very clear. The Apostle [Paul] says...

1) [Ro 9:10-23]:

(Ro 9:10 NASB) "And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac;

(Ro 9:11 NKJV) For though the twins were not yet born, and had not done anything good or bad, in order that God's purpose according to His [election] [="Eklogen"] would stand, not because of works, but because of Him Who calls [="kalountos"],

[Notice that there was no merit or future actions foreseen or implicated in any way in either Jacob or Esau. God's choice was unaffected by the character or future action of either twin]

(Ro 9:12 NASB) it was said to her, 'The older will serve the younger.'

(Ro 9:13 NASB) Just as it is written, 'Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.'

(Ro 9:14 NASB) What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be!

(Ro 9:15 NASB) For He says to Moses, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.'

(Ro 9:16) So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God Who has mercy.

[Notice that God chooses one over another without impugning His justice, (Ro 9:14).

Furthermore, that choice is solely in accordance with His will, (Ro 9:15).

Finally, nothing in this operation is dependent upon the will of man, (Ro 9:16).]

(Ro 9:17 NASB) For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, 'For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.'

(Ro 9:18 NASB) So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.

(Ro 9:19 NASB) You will say to me then 'Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?'

(Ro 9:20 NASB) On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, 'Why did you make me like this, 'will it? [Isa 29:16; 45:9]

(Ro 9:21 NASB) Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump a vessel for honorable use, and another for dishonor?

["dishonor" = "atimian" = "vileness" = points to those who are destined to God's eternal wrath & condemnation.

Notice that God has "a right...to make from the same lump" of the clay of lost humanity a vessel for honorable use, the elect, and another for dishonor = eternal condemnation. And this is His right, without impugning His character, especially considering that all humanity deserves eternal condemnation]

(Ro 9:22 NASB) What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?

(Ro 9:23 NASB) And He did so in order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory."

[Pentecost, cont.]:

"This passage is very important to understanding of the doctrine of election. You will notice that God [alone] is the One doing the electing; further, election was based upon the sovereign will of God [and not man's]. It was not God's response to good or evil in the one elected, for this election took place while the twins [Jacob and Esau] were in the womb of their mother, before either had done good or evil as the basis for His election or rejection. Election was to fulfill the purpose to God. God's foreordained plan was the reason for God's election of Jacob. God has separated unto Himself those through whom His program would be fulfilled."

F) Election Separates From Among Men, All Of Whom Are Under Condemnation, Some To Fulfill God's Purpose Of Salvation By Grace And Some To Fulfill His Purpose Of Destruction

1) [Ro 9:10-23]:

(Ro 9:10 NASB) "And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac;

(Ro 9:11 NASB) For though the twins were not yet born, and had not done anything good or bad, in order that God's purpose according to His choice might stand, not because of works, but because of Him Who calls,

(Ro 9:12 NASB) it was said to her, 'The Older will serve the younger.'

(Ro 9:13 NASB) Just as it is written, 'Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.'

(Ro 9:14 NASB) What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be!

(Ro 9:15 NASB) For He says to Moses, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.'

(Ro 9:16 NASB) So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God Who has mercy.

(Ro 9:17 NASB) For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, 'For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.'

(Ro 9:18 NASB) So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.

(Ro 9:19 NASB) You will say to me then 'Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?'

(Ro 9:20 NASB) On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, 'Why did you make me like this, will it?' [Isa 29:16; 45:9]

(Ro 9:21 NASB) Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump on vessel for honorable use, and another for dishonor?

["dishonor" = "atimian" = "vileness" = points to those who are destined to God's eternal wrath & condemnation]:

(Ro 9:22 NASB) What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?

(Ro 9:23 NASB) And He did so in order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory"

[Pentecost, op. cit., pp. 139-141]:

"Observe that when God elects, God elects out of men who were lost. Election does not separate some unto heaven and some unto hell. Election separates from among men, all of whom are under condemnation, some to fulfill God's purpose and program. Election is of grace because all men were under the curse and the wrath of God. God, to fulfill His predetermined, foreordained, decreed program, has selected those instruments He chooses to use by which that purpose and program should come to fulfillment. That any man should have been elected by God is a manifestation of the infinite grace of an infinite God."

[For none selected is deserving anything but eternal condemnation]

G) The Elect Will Inevitably Trust In Christ As Savior Unto Eternal Life And The Non-Elect Will Not

1) The Elect Will Inevitably Trust In Christ As Savior Unto Eternal Life

a) [Compare Romans 8:28-30]:

(Ro 8:28 NASB) "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose.

(Ro 8:29 NASB) For those He [God] foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brethren.

(Ro 8:30 NASB) And these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified"

Notice that God called those according to His purpose, hence He foreknew / determined beforehand who would choose to believe in and become conformed to the image of His Son because He predestined it - He decreed it to occur so that His Son might be the Righteous Firstborn among many Righteous brothers. So in view is that God foreknew therefore He predestined and thus He called, i.e., "EkalEsEn" = "elected," resulting in justification unto eternal life and glorification - being conformed to the image of God's Son. Since a moment of faith alone in Christ alone unto eternal life is required in order to be conformed to the image of God's Son is required, and since believing is a free will operation by definition , then man's free will decision to believe or not believe unto eternal life is implied but not a factor in this equation. Nevertheless, those whom God chose to believe will inevitably choose to believe of their own free will, and those whom God did not choose to be conformed to the image of His Son will inevitably not choose to believe.

2) The Non-Elect Will Inevitably Not Believe

a) [Compare 1 Peter 2:7-8]:

(1 Pet 2:7) "Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, 'The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone,'

(1 Pet 2:8) and, 'A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.' They stumble because they disobey the message - which is also what they were destined for."

Notice that those who disobey, i.e., refuse to believe the message of the gospel, (cf. Jn 3:36); thereby stumble because the message of Christ and Him crucified became a stumbling block, (1 Cor 1:23), that hardened their hearts when they heard the truth of the gospel, (cf. Heb 3:7-19) / their mindset against the gospel. And all those that did refuse to believe were destined, i.e., decreed for this to happen by God. For all individuals have a capacity to obey the message of, i.e., TO believe in the Gospel WHEN THEY REACH ACCOUNTABILITY. What is stopping them is their minds being set on the flesh. They are not able to believe in Christ because their mindset is unwilling to be subject to God, (Ro 8:7-8) - elect and non-elect alike. Therefore all individuals stumble over the message of faith alone in Christ alone, the Stumbling Block until some, (the elect), are provided with God's drawing, i.e., His work of election within them such that they are drawn in the sense of their wills being persuaded to believe in the Son by the Father and given to the Son, (Jn 6:44-45). So the veil hiding an understanding of the gospel is taken away, (2 Cor 3:16; 4:3-4). They are giv en to listening to what God is saying to them. They are provided with the gift of faith which they willingly exercise, (Phil 1:29). They inevitably choose of their own volitions to trust alone in Christ alone of their own volition and are saved unto eternal life, just as God had decreed from the foundation of the universe, (Ro 8:28-30). Goes from being unwilling to consider Christ to being willing via God's persuasion and believing and becoming forever saved unto eternal life.

b) [Compare Ro 9:19-22]:

(Ro 9:19) "One of you will say to me: 'Then why does God still blame us? For who resists his will?'

(Ro 9:20) But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? "Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?'

(Ro 9:21) Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for dishonor"?

["dishonor" = "atimian" = "vileness" = points to those who are destined to God's eternal wrath & condemnation]:

(Ro 9:22) What if God, choosing to show His wrath and make His power known, bore with great patience the objects of His wrath--prepared for destruction?"

Notice that those who are destined for the Lake of Fire were made 'out of the same lump of clay' of humanity 'for dishonor', i.e., for the purpose of condemnation, (1 Ro 9:21). They were 'prepared for destruction,' (1 Ro 9:22). Although they indeed do have the opportunity to believe and be saved, (Jn 3:16), they evidently were not elect so they are on their own as to the choice to trust in Christ or not. They were thus created for 'dishonor' and 'prepared for destruction,' such that they inevitably will 'disobey the message' of the gospel, i.e, choose of their own volition to never trust in Christ as Savior and suffer eternal condemnation.

V) THE DRAWING OF INDIVIDUALS BY GOD AND HIS GRANTING THE GIFT OF FAITH TO THOSE WHOM HE HAS CHOSEN

A) (Jn 3:14-18; 6:35-44, 64-66) The Father Is Absolutely Sovereign In His Choice Of Whom To Give To The Son - Neither Depending Upon The Will Of Man, Nor Solely Upon His Omniscience, But Upon His Foreordination, His Decrees. Since Not All Men Will Choose To Be Saved Unto Eternal Life, Then Only Some Will Be Chosen. Those Chosen / Given By The Father To The Son Will Inevitably Be Enabled By The Father And Willfully Choose Of Their Own Volition To Come To (Believe In) The Son And Be Saved Unto Eternal Life

(Jn 3:14 NIV) "[And] just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, (Jn 3:15 NKJV) that whoever believes in Him should not perish but [should] have eternal life. (Jn 3:16 NIV) For God so loved the world that he gave His One and Only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but [should] have eternal life. (Jn 3:17 NKJV) For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. (Jn 3:18 NKJV) He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the [one and only] Son of God )... (Jn 6:35 NKJV) And Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life. [The {one who} comes] to Me shall never hunger, and [the {one who} believes in Me shall never thirst [at any time]. (Jn 6:36 YLT) But I said to you, that [you] also have seen Me, and [you] believe not; (Jn 6:37 NIV) All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me [lit., the coming ones to Me] I will never drive away, [lit., 'never cast out']. (Jn 6:38 NIV) For I have come down from heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him Who sent Me, [lit., the One having sent Me] (Jn 6:39 YLT) And this is the will of the Father Who sent Me, that all that He [has] given to Me I may not lose of it, but may raise it up in the last day. (Jn 6:40 NKJV) And this is the will of Him who sent Me, [alt. "of My Father"] that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day. (Jn 6:41 NAS) Therefore the Jews were grumbling about Him, because He said, "I am the Bread that came down [lit., having come down] out of heaven." (Jn 6:42 NAS) [And] they were saying, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? [alt. Therefore] How does He now say, 'I have come down out of heaven?' " (Jn 6:43 KJV) Jesus therefore answered and said [to] them, "Murmur [lit., grumble] not among yourselves. (Jn 6:44 YLT) No one is able to come [to] Me, if the Father Who sent Me may not draw him, and I will raise him up in the last day)... (Jn 6:64 YLT) but there are [some] of you who do not believe;' for Jesus had known from the beginning who they are who are not believing, and who is he [Judas, (cf. Jn 6:71)] who will deliver Him up, (Jn 6:65 YLT) and he said, 'Because of this I have said to you - No one is able to come unto Me, if it may not have been given him from My Father.' " =

Note that in Jn 6:37, the Father is sovereign in His choice of whom to give to the Son - neither depending upon the will of man, nor upon His omniscience, but on His foreordination and decrees. Furthermore, since not all men will be saved unto eternal life, (cf. Jn 3:18b; 6:64; Mt 7:13-14) then only some will be chosen, (elected), to be given by the Father to the Son; and each one who has been chosen by the Father to be given to the Son, whereupon each one will inevitably choose of ones own volition to come to (believe in) the Son and be saved unto eternal life.

The concept in Jn 6:37 of the Father giving individuals to the Son does not imply that the Father is dependent upon knowing that those individuals will believe in Christ as Savior beforehand, although His omniscience certainly tells Him this, because the order of events and sovereign priority according to Jn 6:37-44 are that those who are given by the Father to the Son, (Jn 6:37), will thereupon, according to Jn 6:44, be drawn by the Father to be able to believe in and then come to the Son BY FAITH, in the sense of choosing to believe in the Son and be saved unto eternal life. The certainty that all who are drawn by the Father will come in faith to the Son is established in the second clause of Jn 6:44b, "and I will raise him up in the last day," as well as in the next verse, (Jn 6:45): [Jesus said], "It is written in the Prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' [Isa 54:13] Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me." God cannot be dependent upon the will of man, otherwise His sovereignty is not Absolute.

Consider the meaning of the Father's drawing of an individual to be able to come to (believe in) the Son. Notice that only after the Father has drawn an individual will he be able to and inevitably come in faith in the Son. For all men have the capacity to believe, but all are inhibited by their sinful natures until the Father chooses some of them and draws and enables them to choose of their own volitions to believe in the Son for eternal life.

Note that in Jn 6:44, it is implied that not all of humanity is drawn by the Father, as some contend they will be, citing Jn 12:32 as a prooftext. But the statements in Jn 6:37-44, "No one is able to come [to] Me, if the Father Who sent Me may not draw him, and I will raise him up in the last day" and Jn 6:65, "No one is able to come unto Me, if it may not have been given him from My Father," imply that being drawn and given by the Father are essential and inevitably effective in bringing an individual to be able to and actually choose of his own volition to exercise a moment of saving faith in God's Son. The passage in John chapter 6 and passages throughout Scripture indicate that not all will choose to believe and be saved unto eternal life: "but there are [some] of you who do not believe," (Jn 6:64). So not all of humanity will be drawn by the Father in the context of Jn 6:44. Jesus' statement in Jn 6:44, "No one is able to come to Me, if the Father Who sent Me may not draw him" is nonsensical if all men are drawn by the Father, because not all men will come to Jesus, so why make this statement to those who do not believe, when it makes no difference - they won't come anyway?

Since every version has the second phrase of Jn 6:44, namely, "and I will raise him up at the last day," with resurrection to eternal life in view, considering the ongoing context of Jn chapter 6, especially 6:35-44; then only those who are drawn by the Father will receive eternal life; especially considering that Jesus is explaining to those who do not believe in Him, (vv. 36, 64-65), that their unbelief in Him, hence their destiny of not being eternal life, is due to the Father not giving them to Him in vv. 36-37, and due to the Father not drawing them in v. 44. So the contention that Jn 6:44 is a universal drawing of all men by the Father is not in view, because Jesus is addressing those who have not believed in vv. 34-36 telling them that they have not believed and explaining in verse 37 that "All those the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out." So those who choose not to believe in Jesus, do not choose to believe because they have not been given to the Son. But those that have been given to Jesus by the Father, Jesus said that He will "certainly not cast out," in the sense of declaring that they will have eternal life as a result of also because their volition chose to believe and not continue in unbelief.

In conclusion, other statements elsewhere in Scripture such as all men being drawn to Christ when He is lifted up on the cross and similar statements are neither the same drawing of the Father, nor the same context / result as the drawing of the Father in Jn 6:37-44 which the latter results in all those drawn to be raised up on the last day, (cf. Jn 12:32-33 ).

So in the light of 6:37-44, it can be concluded that all who come to faith in Jesus were previously drawn by the Father, (v. 44); and thus all who come to faith were, previous to that faith, given by the Father to the Son, (v. 37); and drawn by the Father, (v. 44), Jesus "shall lose none of all that He [the Father] has given [Him], that the Father has drawn, (vv. 39 & 44), but raise them [all] at the last day," (vv. 39 & 44). Finally, it is the "Father's will that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him [which is all who will ever believe] shall have eternal life, and I [Jesus] will raise him [= all] up at the last day," (v. 40).

B) (Jn 6:44) Since The Inherent Nature Of Believing By Definition Is Free Will, Then The Father's Drawing Of An Individual Does Not Impose His Will Upon That Individual, Nor Force That Individual To Believe, Nor Override Man's Capacity To Believe; Rather The Father's Drawing Enables The Individual, Persuades Him To Choose Of His Own Volition, To Believe In Jesus Christ For Eternal Life

(Jn 6:44 YLT) "No one is able to come [to] Me, if the Father Who sent Me may not draw him, and I will raise him up in the last day." =

Although "no one is able to come to Me [= saving faith in Jesus Christ] unless the Father.... draws him," the individual must still choose of his own volition to come [to believe] in Him.

Since the phrase "no one is able to come to Me [Christ]" in this context means to believe in Him to provide eternal life for one, (Jn 6:35); and since to believe is defined as to accept, regard, receive as true that Jesus Christ is the Bread of Life Who will provide eternal life in a moment's faith in Him to do that; and since the word believe requires that the individual have complete freedom to exercise his will to believe in what he will ; then God's drawing stipulated in Jn 6:44 cannot imply His [God's] overpowering an individual's freedom to exercise his will in what he believes.

Although the Greek verb "hEkluO" can mean to drag, draw, force, persuade depending upon context; such as a forceful dragging out of the congregation, "hElkousin," in Jas 2:6; and a forceful dragging of fish in nets into the boat, "hElkusai," in Jn 21:6; the word "hElkuse" in the context of Jn 6:44 must mean that the Father draws an individual in the sense of persuading that individual so that he is able to and assuredly will exercise faith in Christ of his own volition unto eternal life.

C) (Jn 3:15-18; 6:35-44) Since The Inherent Nature Of Believing Is Free Will, God's Drawing Of An Individual Does Not Force Man Against His Will To Believe. Although Man's Choosing To Believe Implies That All Men Of Accountable Age Have The Capacity To Believe; Man Cannot Believe Because His Sinful Will Is Irrationally Set Against It Unless The Father Draws Him - Persuades Him To Choose To Believe Of His Own Free Will

(Jn 3:15 NKJV) '''That whoever believes in Him should not perish but [should] have eternal life. (Jn 3:16 NIV) For God so loved the world that he gave His One and Only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but [should] have eternal life. (Jn 3:17 NKJV) For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. (Jn 3:18 NKJV) He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the [one and only] Son of God )... (Jn 6:35 NKJV) And Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life. [The {one who} comes] to Me shall never hunger, and [the {one who} believes in Me shall never thirst [at any time]. (Jn 6:36 YLT) But I said to you, that [you] also have seen Me, and [you] believe not; (Jn 6:37 NIV) All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me [lit., the coming ones to Me] I will never drive away, [lit., 'never cast out']. (Jn 6:38 NIV) For I have come down from heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him Who sent Me, [lit., the One having sent Me] (Jn 6:39 YLT) And this is the will of the Father Who sent Me, that all that He [has] given to Me I may not lose of it, but may raise it up in the last day. (Jn 6:40 NKJV) And this is the will of Him who sent Me, [alt. "of My Father"] that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day. (Jn 6:41 NAS) Therefore the Jews were grumbling about Him, because He said, "I am the Bread that came down [lit., having come down] out of heaven." (Jn 6:42 NAS) [And] they were saying, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? [alt. Therefore] How does He now say, 'I have come down out of heaven?' " (Jn 6:43 KJV) Jesus therefore answered and said [to] them, "Murmur [lit., grumble] not among yourselves. (Jn 6:44 YLT) No one is able to come [to] Me, if the Father Who sent Me may not draw him, and I will raise him up in the last day." ''' =

For one to come to Christ in the context of Jn 6:44 is to believe in Him to provide eternal life for one, (cf. Jn 6:35-36, 40). And to believe is defined as to accept, regard, receive as true that Jesus Christ is the Bread of Life Who will provide eternal life in a moment of faith alone in Him alone to do that. Hence the word believe requires that the individual have complete capacity and freedom to exercise his will to believe or not .

Since the nature of faith is volitional by definition, i.e., by the will of man; and since Scripture requires all individuals of accountable age to believe in the Son for eternal life, then coming to faith in the Son is within the capacity of man to exercise. But according to Jn 6:44, for one to exercise ones will and believe in Jesus Christ unto salvation, the Father must draw one to be able to exercise one's will unto saving faith within one's capacity to believe. Evidently what is in view is that man of accountable age does have the capacity to believe in Jesus Christ unto eternal life, but he will not evidently exercise that capacity until after the Father draws him.

The meaning of the word rendered "draw" in Jn 6:44 is to compel, persuade ones volition to choose to consider and believe in Jesus Christ for eternal life. In the case of God's drawing one to choose to believe in His Son unto eternal life in Jn 6:44, it is evidently irresistable, because the result of everyone who is drawn by the Father is inevitably to choose to believe in His Son unto eternal life.

Since all individuals who reach the point of accountability by definition have the capability of choosing to believe in whatever they choose to believe in; then Jesus' statement that "No one is able to come to me unless the Father draws him" cannot have in view God's overriding of an individual's will such that He overpowers the exercising of what that individual chooses to believe. It must refer to an individual's own will which blocks his own decision to choose to believe in Jesus for eternal life.

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1) The Crux Of The Matter Of Why Man Cannot Fulfill The Righteous Requirements Of God Is Within The Nature Of Man Himself: Man Is Enslaved To His Sin Nature And At Enmity With God. The Unbeliever Chooses Against Being Subject To The Law Of God, Nor Can He Be Subject To It Because He Cannot Bring Himself To Choose To Do So

(Ro 8:3 YLT) "For what the Law was not able to do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God, His own Son having sent in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, did condemn ...sin in the flesh. (Ro 8:4 NASB) so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to [the] flesh but according to [the] Spirit. (Ro 8:5 YLT) For those who are according to [the] flesh, the things of the flesh do mind; and those according to [the] Spirit, the things of the Spirit. (Ro 8:6 YLT) for the mind of the flesh [is] death, and the mind of the Spirit - life and peace (Ro 8:7 ASV) because the mind of the flesh is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be: (Ro 8:8 ASV) and they that are in the flesh cannot please God." =

The crux of the matter of why man cannot fulfill the righteous requirements of God is within the nature of man himself: man is enslaved to his sin nature and at enmity with God. The unbeliever chooses against being subject to the Law of God, nor can he be subject to it because he cannot bring himself to choose to do so. It is a matter of his will.

So the Law of God as best exemplified by the Mosaic Law then was powerless to fulfill its righteous requirement in mankind, (cf. Ro 8:3-4), because it is not within the nature of man himself to be righteous. "The mind of the flesh," in verse 8:7, is a description of the unbeliever's mind being enslaved to the flesh, i.e., the sin nature. The unbeliever is thereby at enmity, i.e., having an irreconciliable hatred and hostility against God. The unbeliever willfully rejects being subject to the law of God, to the standard of His righteousness, and does evil instead. The unbeliever's will is so entrenched in his evil mentality and corresponding ways, that he finds himself unable to choose to subject himself to the righteous law of God. It is totally abhorent to him.

a) [Compare 2 Cor 4:3-4]:

"The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, Who is the image of God."

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 (NASB)
³ "And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing,
⁴ in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God."

Notice that while one is an unbeliever one is blinded to the gospel unable to see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ because they are unwilling to change their ungodly frame of reference whose origin is the god of this age to the truth of Who God is and to then choose to believe alone in His Son alone for salvation. They have the capacity to believe, but they are unwilling to consider anything outside of that ungodly frame of reference - even if Jesus Himself performed miracles in front of them as He did so many years ago in the first century:

b) [Compare Jn 12:37-40]:

(Jn 12:37) '''Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him.

[Notice that it is not a matter of capacity, but a matter of the human will, despite Jesus' miracles]

(Jn 12:38) This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet: "Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?"

(Jn 12:39) For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere:

(Jn 12:40) "He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn - and I would heal them." '''

Individuals who repeatedly would not believe in Jesus Christ - even after witnessing His miracles, God made it so their eyes were blinded and their hearts were deadened so that they could neither see, nor understand because they would not turn to God and believe. So man does have the capacity to obey God and understand what He has said, but his sinful nature has turned his will totally against the exercise of that capacity. Hence he cannot please God with saving faith because in his stubbornness he will not choose to do so, (cf. Ro 8:8).

Just as some individuals with the capacity and intelligence to do well in school cannot do well because they will not, i.e., they have an incorrigible attitude problem - they will not do homework, nor study, nor carry books, nor appear studious in any way because it would jeopardize their self-image and perhaps their association with a peer group or for a number of other arbitrarily rebellious reasons;

so all unsaved individuals all of which have the capacity to trust alone in Christ alone unto eternal life, (otherwise God would not ask them to trust in His Son, (Jn 3:5-18, etc.), cannot please God by trusting in Christ as Savior because they will not, i.e., because they all have totally depraved natures that simply will not accept anything that God commands them to do. They cannot believe in Christ as Savior because they will not even accept the sovereignty of God in their lives over their eternal destiny.

Or consider the wife who in spite of the evidence presented cannot believe her husband has been unfaithful because she just will not accept the truth.

Since finite man has the capacity but cannot believe certain things relative to his daily / temporal life because of prejudices, so it is indeed possible that man has the capacity to hear God with understanding and believe in the gospel but cannot because of his prejudice against God, i.e., his depraved will: He cannot because he will not.

[BKC, op. cit., pp. 319-320]:

"12:37. John from the beginning of his Gospel (1:11) had sounded the theme of national unbelief. John now explained that in spite of all Jesus' miraculous signs (sEmeia), they still would not believe in Him. Their unbelief was irrational, as sin always is.

12:38. The Jews' national, irrational unbelief had been predicted by Isaiah the prophet. The clearest Old Testament passage concerning the suffering Servant (Isa 53:1-12) began by stating that Israel would not perceive God's revelation in and through the Servant. Who has believed our message and seen His arm...revealed? implies that only a few have believed (quoting Isa 53:1).

12:39-40. Then John again quoted from Isaiah (6:10) to explain that the nation as a whole was unable to believe. Because they constantly rejected God's revelation, He had punished them with judicial blindness and deadened... hearts. People in Jesus' day, like those in Isaiah's day, refused to believe. They 'would not believe' (Jn 12:37); therefore they could not believe (Jn 12:39). Similar illustrations of God's punishing of persistent sin by hardening are common (Ex 9:12; Rom 1:24, 26, 28; 2 Thes 2:8-12).'''

2) Although An Unbeliever Cannot Please God With Anything Godly In His Lifestyle, He Does Have The Capacity To Express A Moment Of Faith Alone In Christ Alone. For Believing In Something Is A Noncontributory Mental Activity - Neither A Meritable Act, Nor A Lifestyle Activity

(Ro 8:5 YLT) "For those who are according to [the] flesh, the things of the flesh do mind; and those according to [the] Spirit, the things of the Spirit. (Ro 8:6 YLT) for the mind of the flesh [is] death, and the mind of the Spirit - life and peace (Ro 8:7 ASV) because the mind of the flesh is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can it be: (Ro 8:8 ASV) and they that are in the flesh cannot please God."

Although an unbeliever cannot please God with anything godly in his life, he does have the capacity to express a moment of faith alone in Christ alone. For the act of believing in something is a non-contributory mental activity - neither a meritable act, nor a lifestyle activity (Eph 2:8-9 ) - the context of the passage in Romans chapter 8.

The phrase "They that are in the flesh" in Ro 8:8 is describing in this context the individual who is enslaved to his sin nature - the unbeliever, and the carnal believer. It goes on to say that the unbeliever cannot please God with anything he does in his life. This is not to say that the unbeliever cannot choose to trust alone in Christ alone in order to be justified and THEREBY IN ORDER TO receive the righteousness of God and eternal life, (Ro 3:20-24) - which of course would please God; since believing in something is a noncontributory mental activity - neither a meritable act nor a lifestyle activity:

a) [Compare Ro 3:21-24]:

(Ro 3:21 NASB) "But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,

(Ro 3:22 NASB) even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction;

(Ro 3:23 NASB) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

(Ro 3:24 NASB) being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;"

Notice that this passage stipulates that those who are not yet believers, i.e., those who are of the flesh and cannot please God, (Ro 8:5-8), receive a righteousness from God, i.e., are justified freely by God's grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus through faith, (Ro 3:22), which implies that unbelievers can and do exercise such faith and by this do please God. The expression of faith in Christ which justifies an unbeliever is an unmeritable mental activity, outside of the realm of lifestyle, which is what is in view in Ro 8:8: a lifestyle of the unbeliever which is totally occupied with and dominated by the sin nature and thereby producing a lifestyle which is unable to please God. The nature of believing in something in order to be saved from ones own evil doing cannot be construed to be a godly behavior, for one is not proactively doing something godly when one trusts in Christ for salvation but only passively accepting God's work, not their own, in order to be saved. So although the exercise of saving faith would certainly please God, it is an action defined by God as within the bounds of His grace, (cf. Ro 3:24), i.e., unmerited favor and not within the realm of godly or ungodly behavior. Hence the exercise of saving faith is a passive and non-contributory mental activity which all individuals of accountability and sufficient cognitive ability have the capacity to exercise - believers and unbelievers, carnal and godly, (cf Eph 2:8-9 ).

D) (Jn 6:37-45) An Individual's Choice To Be Taught By The LORD - To Choose To Listen To And To Learn From The Father - Is A Function Of God's Drawing Of Him, Which Drawing Inevitably Results In The Individual To Be Able To And Choose To Come To A Moment Of Faith Alone In Jesus Christ Alone To Become An Eternal Child Of God In The Kingdom Of God Unto Eternal Life, In The Pattern Of The Children Of Ancient Israel Who Will Enter The Eternal Kingdom Of God By That Same Faith

(Jn 6:37 NIV) '''All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me [lit., the coming ones to Me] I will never drive away, [lit., 'never cast out']. (Jn 6:38 NIV) For I have come down from heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him Who sent Me, [lit., the One having sent Me] (Jn 6:39 YLT) And this is the will of the Father Who sent Me, that all that He [has] given to Me I may not lose of it, but may raise it up in the last day. (Jn 6:40 NKJV) And this is the will of Him who sent Me, [alt. "of My Father"] that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day. (Jn 6:41 NAS) Therefore the Jews were grumbling about Him, because He said, "I am the Bread that came down [lit., having come down] out of heaven." (Jn 6:42 NAS) [And] they were saying, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? [alt. Therefore] How does He now say, 'I have come down out of heaven?' " (Jn 6:43 KJV) Jesus therefore answered and said [to] them, "Murmur [lit., grumble] not among yourselves. (Jn 6:44 YLT) No one is able to come [to] Me, if the Father Who sent Me may not draw him, and I will raise him up in the last day. (Jn 6:45 NKJV) It is written in the Prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' [Isa 54:13] Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.''' =

Jesus explained the phrase, "No one is able to come [to] Me, if the Father Who sent Me may not draw him," in Jn 6:44a with this quotation from Isa 54:13 in the Old Testament in Jn 6:45a: "And they shall all be taught by God;" which is followed by Jesus' words in Jn 6:45b, "Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me." So an individual's choice to be taught by the LORD - to choose to listen to and to learn from the Father are functions of God's drawing of him, which drawing inevitably results in the individual choosing to come to a moment of faith alone in Jesus Christ for eternal life, in the pattern of the children of ancient Israel who will enter the eternal Kingdom of God which passage from Isaiah is quoted and commented upon by Jesus as recorded in Jn 6:45:

1) [Compare Jn 6:44-45 with Isa 54:13]:

(Jn 6:44 YLT) [Jesus said] "No one is able to come [to] Me, if the Father Who sent Me may not draw him, and I will raise him up in the last day;

(Jn 6:45 NKJV) "It is written in the Prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' [Isa 54:13]. Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.' "

(Isa 54:13 NKJV) "All your children shall be taught by the LORD. And great shall be the peace of your children."

Isaiah declared that the children, (the descendants), of the ancient Israelites who enter the eternal Kingdom of God when the LORD rules His Kingdom from the earth - will be taught by the LORD in the sense of being faithful to His instructions. Isaiah concluded, "And great shall be the peace of your children," implying an eternal godly lifestyle in the Kingdom of God.

These words of Isaiah are further implied by Jesus Christ in Jn 6:45 to signify that everyone who is drawn by God will inevitably choose to be taught by the LORD, i.e., will inevitably choose to listen to and to learn from the Father. And all of these will inevitably come to Jesus Christ by a moment of faith alone in Him alone unto eternal life, and dwell in the Eternal Kingdom of God forever. And the key source of learning from the Father is the Word of God - the Bible.

E) God Provides The Gift Of Faith For Those Whom He Has Chosen To Trust Alone In His Son Alone Unto Eternal Life Of Their Own Volition

(Phil 1:29 NASB) "For to you [the saints in Christ Jesus, (v. 1)] it has been granted for Christ's sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake," =

Notice that God has exclusively granted to those who would believe in Christ not only to believe on Him but also to suffer for Him. Since all men of accountable age are commanded to believe in Christ unto eternal life - and are held accountable unto condemnation if they do not believe, (cf. Jn 3:18); then God's gift of faith given to those who will then choose to believe is not the gift of the capacity to believe, since all men are given that capacity and held accountable [at accountable age] for what they do believe, but the gift of faith which God grants to an individual is the gift of persuading that individual to enable him to exercise his free will to believe in God's Son.

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F) All Mankind Is Also Drawn To God In A Number Of Other Ways

1) (Jn 12:32-34) All Men Throughout The Ages Will Be Drawn By Christ As A Result Of Him Being Lifted Up On The Cross; But In This Case, Not All Will Respond. This Is Evidently Not The Same Drawing As The Father's Drawing Of Those Who Will Come To Jesus Christ

(Jn 12:32 NASB) '''And I, [Jesus], if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.

(Jn 12:33 NASB) But He was saying this to indicate the kind of death by which He was to die.

(Jn 12:34 NASB) The crowd then answered Him, "We have heard out of the Law that the Christ is to remain forever; and how can You say, 'The Son of Man must be lifted up?' Who is this Son of Man?" ''' =

Here in this passage in John chapter 12, it is evident that Jesus said that He will draw all men, Greek "pantas" Str 3956 = all, (i.e., everyone whoever lived will be drawn to Him with a view of His death on the cross for the sins of the whole world, (Jn 3:14-18; 1 Jn 2:2). But the result is not stipulated that these who are drawn to Christ having been lifted up on the cross will inevitably believe in Him for eternal life. This is evidently a different drawing than in Jn 6:44 in which all those who are drawn will inevitably all believe:

a) [Compare Jn 6:44]:

(Jn 6:44 YLT) [Jesus said] "No one is able to come [to] Me, if the Father Who sent Me may not draw him, and I will raise him up in the last day;"

Notice that those who are drawn by the Father will be raised up in the last day - to eternal life. Hence this cannot be the universal drawing of all mankind to Christ when He was lifted up on the cross, for all mankind will not be raised up in the last day to eternal life

So the message of Jn 12:32 is different, it indicates that all men will be made cognizant of the fact that Christ died on the cross for them. Some will have their consciences pricked, most will have their hearts hardened, not responding. None will be saved except those whom the Father draws thereafter - a different drawing than the universal drawing of all men that will not result in all men being raised up the last day to eternal life:

For example, Judas, who was constantly with the Lord was drawn to Jesus Christ especially after He was crucified directly after Judas betrayed Him, as evidenced by his guilt, remorse and suicide; yet he never once believed in Him, (cf. Jn 5:64, 70-71; 17:12).

Furthermore, the nation of Israel, was consistently drawn to trust in a coming Messiah to repent unto faith in Him, yet she consistently failed; except for a remnant who did believe and was preserved throughout the ages (Ro 11:1-5). In Lk 10:13-16; Mt 11:20-23), Jesus said that the guilt of those in Chorazin and Bethsaida would be greater than that of those from ancient Tyre and Sidon because they had rejected greater light. Jesus indicted the whole generation of Jews of His time for rejecting Him - the One greater than Solomon and Jonah (Luke 11:29-32).

All men indeed are drawn to Christ and Him crucified; and all men have available to them the full benefit of what He did on the cross. But Scripture indicates that few men will respond in faith to this universal drawing of all mankind, (Mt 7:13-14).

2) (Jn 16:8-11) All Men Are Drawn By The Holy Spirit To Conviction Of Sin And Judgment And The Need For Righteousness But Few Respond, Implying That All Men Are Indeed Capable Of Trusting In Christ For Eternal Life, But They Largely Will Not Believe In Him

(Jn 16:8 YLT) [Jesus said] "And having come, He [the Holy Spirit, vv. 7-8] will convict the world concerning sin, and concerning righteousness, and concerning judgment;

(Jn 16:9 NASB) concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me;

(Jn 16:10 NASB) and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me;

(Jn 16:11 NASB) and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged" =

Note that as a result of Christ's defeat of and judgment / condemnation of the ruler of this world, the Devil; and due to the world's continued unbelief in Jesus, following His ascension, Jesus Christ promised that the Holy Spirit would come to convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment to come. This implies that men can be convicted of sin, their need for righteousness, and that there indeed is judgment to come. Man is thus held accountable for his unbelief in Jesus Christ especially as to His message of convicting men of sin, the need for righteousness and a coming judgment - all of this implying that all men are indeed capable of trusting in Christ for salvation despite their sinful condition, but largely will not do so.

3) (Ro 1:18-23) All Mankind Is Drawn By Creation And The Order In Which It Exists To Believe In The Creator. So Man Is Without Excuse, But Few Will Choose To Respond

(Ro 1:18 NASB) "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,

(Ro 1:19 NASB) because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.

(Ro 1:20 NASB) For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse." =

Notice that the creation of the world gives clear and plain evidence of Who God is. Hence creation draws all mankind to God, so man is without excuse, but few will respond.

4) (Acts 17:24-27) The Order In Which Creation Exists - The Times Set For Man And The Exact Places Where They Should Live Give Clear Evidence Of Who God Is So That All Men May Be Drawn To Their Creator And Seek Him. But Few Will

(Acts 17:24 NASB) "The God Who made the world and all things in it, since He is LORD of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands;

(Acts 17:25 NASB) nor is He [being served] by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things.

(Acts 17:26 NASB) and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation,

(Acts 17:27 NASB) that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us;"

Notice that the order in which creation exists, especially God's determination of the times set for man and the exact places where they should live give clear evidence of Who God is so that all men may be drawn to their Creator and seek Him. This implies that man can understand Who God is and seek Him. But few will choose to do this.]

VI) PREDESTINATION = THAT END WHICH IS DETERMINED BEFOREHAND BY GOD TO WHICH THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN ELECTED ARE SET APART AS PART OF GOD'S OVERALL AND FOREORDAINED PLAN

God predestined each aspect of His overall and foreordained plan for the universe to a predetermined end which includes the predestinated yet free will choices of each individual man and angel who ever lived.

[Pentecost, op. cit., pp. 141-143]

"The next word following election is 'predestination,' which means determine beforehand.' This has to do with the end to which those who have been elected are set apart. This word, when used in Scripture, is always qualified by a statement of the end or the aim in view. In Ephesians 1:4-5 we read...

A) [Eph 1:4-5, 11]:

(Eph 1:4) "For He [God the Father, (Eph 1:3a)] chose us [believers, (Eph 1:1)] in Him [i.e., to be in Christ - to be saved, (Eph 1:3b)] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight, in love...

(Eph 1:5) [in love, (Eph 1:4c)], having predestinated us to adoption as sons [i.e., as children] through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will."

"...He predestinated us - and what was the end, or the aim? The adoption of [us as] children. Notice it again in verse 11:

(Eph 1:11) In Him we were also chosen having been predestinated according to the plan of Him Who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will"

Predestinated - for what end? To obtain an inheritance. See it in Romans 8:29:

B) [Ro 8:29]:

"For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brothers."

'For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate [and what was the end?] to be conformed to the image of His Son...'

Or we see it again in 1 Corinthians 2:7 where we were predestinated unto glory. The Apostle [Paul] says:

C) [1 Cor 2:7]:

"No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and which God ordained before the world unto our glory."

From these Scriptures we would emphasize again the important fact that when predestination is used in the Scriptures it determines the end, or the goal in view, for those whom God has elected unto Himself. I find no place in Scripture where it is said that we were predestinated to faith, that we were predestinated to belief, or that we were predestinated to accept Christ. No, we were predestinated for glory. We were predestinated unto sonship or inheritance."

On the other hand whomever God predestinates and elects inevitably believes of his own volition because volition is implied in the definition of believing :

D) [Compare Jn 3:16]:

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

E) [Compare Acts 13:48]:

"When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed."

VII) CALLED = TO BE SUMMONED FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE FOREKNOWN BY GOD BECAUSE GOD PREDESTINATED THEM TO BE CALLED AS A RESULT OF HIS FOREORDAINED PURPOSE AND PROGRAM

[Pentecost, op. cit., pp. 141-143]

The word 'predestination' is logically followed by the word 'called,' which is to be understood in its normal designation in which God summons those whom He has foreknown, those whom He has elected, those whom He has predestinated, unto Himself. The call of God to the elect of God - who have been predestinated unto glory - is the consummating act of God's foreordination. God sees to it that His purpose will be accomplished. Those whom He has chosen for Himself will be brought to Himself, that His foreknown and predetermined program might be brought to consummation. The Apostle, in Romans 8:30, said...

A) [Ro 8:29-30]:

(Ro 8:29) "For those God foreknew He also predestinated to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brothers.

(Ro 8:30) And those He predestinated, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified."

The call, then, is a summons to Himself, because they have been predestined unto glory by His foreordained purpose and program, [cf. Jn 6:37, 44].

God's call is not a call to the human will, asking the human will, unaided by divine grace, to respond. God's call is also God's enablement; and God, Who issues the call, imparts the power through the ministry of the Holy Spirit for the individual to respond to that call, so that the sinner who is dead, who is without life, who us under condemnation and judgment, may hear God's call; and although he has no power in himself because he is dead, and no desire to respond because God has been put out of his life, he is enabled by the Holy Spirit to respond to the gracious invitation: 'Whosoever will may come.' Christ made it very clear that the call was part of God's purpose and program, for in John 6:44...

B) [Jn 6:37, 44, 65]:

(Jn 6:37) "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will never drive away."

(Jn 6:44) "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day."

(Jn 6:65) "He went on to say, 'This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him.' "

The drawing and enablement of the Father is the call of the Father to those who have been elected by God's grace, to those who have been predestinated or set apart unto glory, to those who God had foreknown would be the instruments to accomplish His foreordained purpose, which is settled and sure by the eternal and unchangeable decree of God.

C) [Phil 1:29]:

"For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for Him."

The context indicates that the grant to believe on behalf of Christ is a cause of the believer coming of his own volition to a saving faith in Christ. The non elect are not granted the gift of faith on behalf of Christ, otherwise the verse would have no significance for Paul to mention to believers. Furthermore, if all are granted to believe on behalf of Christ then all would believe and be saved, which is not the case according to Scripture.

Thus unbelievers are exclusively under their own auspices to believe in Christ as Savior or not believe.

Since all who believe are elect which Phil 1:29 is addressing;

and since God only grants to the elect the gift of faith unto salvation;

and since one can only come to saving faith in Christ with this gift of faith

and since God decrees all things, not the least of which is this gift of faith unto salvation to the elect only

then God decrees those who will believe unto salvation and those who will not.

This believing or non-believing nevertheless is by personal volition of the individual.

If it were any other way - such as God discovering through His omniscience who will choose to believe in Christ as Savior unto salvation and who will not, then man would be sharing in the sovereignty of God at least on this issue which would make God less than absolutely omnipotent, being dependent upon man's choice to believe or not believe after which God then discovers this and then decrees those who are to be elect.

VIII) THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SINNER IS TO BELIEVE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST AND BE SAVED, OF HIS OWN VOLITION

[Pentecost, cont.]:

"Does this mean that the sinner has no responsibility? Far from it, for Christ has died for the sins of the world. Christ has made a propitiation, or a covering over, for the sins of the world:"

A) [1 Jn 2:2]:

"He is the atoning sacrifice for our [believers', (1 Jn 2:1)] sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world."

Our Lord said:

B) [Jn 3:16]:

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever [lit. whosoever is the believing one] believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life"

The 'whosoever' is unlimited. While only those whom God has called will respond to God's call, yet God's invitation is extended to all men.

If you are without Jesus Christ, there is only one thing that keeps you from Him, and that is the response of your will to the invitation which God gives when He says, 'Whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.'...

To me the truth we have presented is one of the most comforting of all the doctrines in the Word of God. We delight to know that nothing happens by chance. We are not creatures subject to circumstances, dependent upon luck. There is no such thing as 'good luck' for the child of God. An infinite, sovereign God, has foreordained every minute detail of our lives from before the foundation of the world. God has settled His purpose and His program by His unalterable decree. God foreknows exactly what will take place each moment of each day in our lives because it had been determined according to His purpose. God has elected us, not because of what we have done, but because it suited His infinite purpose. God, Who has elected us, has set us apart by predestination to share His glory forever. God, in infinite grace, called us out of night into His love, out of death into His life, and set us apart unto Himself, not because of what we are, but because it suited God's eternal, sovereign purpose so to do. Every moment of every day we are under His care because He is working all things according to the counsel of His own will, so that we might be found unto the praise of the glory of His grace. In this confidence we rest.'

IX) THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE BELIEVER: TO WALK IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE SOVEREIGN WILL OF GOD

Furthermore, in accordance with Mt 22:14, all believers are called to be faithful Christians but only those whom God has chosen = lit., 'called out' will walk faithfully with the Lord:

A) [Mt 22:14]:

(Mt 22:14) "For many are invited but few are chosen."

"invited" = "kletoi" = called

"chosen" = "ekletoi" = called out.

Notice the prefix ek = out, signifying something more than "kletoi" or "called". This is especially emphasized by the contrast between the words "many" and "few" and the conclusion of the parable in which one of the many who were called was cast out of the banquet, (Mt 11:1-13), for being unfaithful, which is attended by the relatively few faithful believers who were chosen or called out. So all men of all ages are called i.e., invited to attend the Lord's wedding banquet; but God's sovereign calling out of those who will remain encompasses only a few.

Without God's election unto eternal life, (ref. Ro 8:30), man will inevitably choose to reject Christ as Savior of his own finite free will. Thus he will opt out of the kingdom of heaven entirely as well as the wedding banquet, destiny to be the Lake of Fire.

And in accordance with God's varying degrees of election and calling of believers unto faithful service - UNBELIEVERS ARE NOT IN VIEW HERE - believers will serve the Lord of their own volition, some will qualify in faithfulness to be permitted to remain in the banquet and receive numerous rewards in heaven but many will not.

B) [Compare Acts 9:15-16]:

(Acts 9:15) "But the Lord said to him [Ananias, (v. 13)] 'Go, for he [Paul] is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel;

(Acts 9:16) for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name's sake."

C) [Compare Jn 15:16]:

"You [the disciples] did not choose Me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit..."

D) [Compare Eph 2:10]:

"For we [believers, (Eph 2:8-9)] are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."

And believers will inevitably choose of their own finite free will to be faithful in accordance with the measure of faith that God has provided for them:

E) [Compare Ro 12:3]:

"For through the grace given to me I say to every man among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith."

And there will be those believers who will choose not to be faithful at all:

F) [Compare 1 Cor 3:12-15]:

(1 Cor 3:12) "Now if any man [i.e., any believer, (1 Cor 3:11)] builds [i.e., does some kind of work, (1 Cor 2:10, 3:9-10)] upon the foundation [of salvation, 1 Cor 3:11)] with gold, silver, precious stones [or] wood, hay, straw,

(1 Cor 3:13) each man's work will become evident [whether it is faithful or not] for the day will show it, because it is to be revealed with fire; and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work.

(1 Cor 3:14) If any man's work which he has built upon it remains he shall receive a reward.

[And now comes the other possibility: loss of rewards due to an unfaithful lifestyle. The believer will actually suffer loss, barely making it to heaven's shores as if he were escaping through the flames of a burning building, left with nothing but himself]:

(1 Cor 3:15) If any man's work is burned up, he shall SUFFER loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire."