Why the Bible rejects Calvinism

"Who verily was foreordained

before the foundation of the world,

but was manifest in these last times for you,"

(1 Peter 1:20)

What does the word 'foreordain' mean?

It means to bring something into being - to make sure something happens.

Does it have a different meaning from 'foreknowledge'?

Absolutely! Foreknowledge simply means knowing that something will happen in the future. To foreordain is to know plus to bring about.

How many times in the Bible is the word 'foreordain' used?

Just once.

Who or what does it refer to?

The Lord Jesus Christ coming in the flesh.

What does all this mean?

It means that whatever else happens in the history of the world, God would manifest the Lord Jesus Christ. That means if the whole of creation were wiped out, it wouldn't matter one bit to God - the Lord Jesus Christ would still appear.

Not only does God have foreknowledge of Jesus Christ, but God will bring him about no matter what. God foreordained him!

Has God foreordained anything or anybody else?

No.

Then he hasn't foreordained who will get saved?

No, but he has foreknowledge as to who will come to the Lord and be saved.

or foreknowledge who will go to hell?

Correct

Does that mean everyone has the ability to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ unto salvation?

Absolutely correct.

People who say that those who will believe have been chosen before the foundation of the world are wrong?

Yes.

How come?

They don't read what the verse actually says. It says "According as he hath chosen us IN HIM before the foundation of the world, ..." (Ephesians 1:4)

We are chosen in him - not into him. This choosing happens after we are in him.

Does it mean then, that to be 'chosen' is to be 'foreordained'?

Absolutely not. Chosen is not foreordination. There is only one man foreordained and that is Jesus Christ. Should you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, God will put you into him and you will then be in the foreordained one, but you were never foreordained to be put into him.

To be chosen then, means that you already have to be in Jesus Christ?

Absolutely.

So we aren't chosen to get into him, but once we are in him we are chosen, is that right?

Yes.

What are we chosen for?

If you read the rest of the verse it is very clear - "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, THAT WE SHOULD BE HOLY AND WITHOUT BLAME BEFORE HIM IN LOVE:"

(Ephesians 1:4)

Once you are in Jesus Christ you will be chosen to be holy and without blame.

So can't we be holy and without blame before we get in to Jesus Christ?

Absolutely not. We are under condemnation in sin outside of him.

Does everyone then, choose to believe or not - of their own free will?

Absolutely!

So God hasn't chosen some people for hell and others for heaven?

Correct. God has foreknowledge of those who will go to hell but he doesn't foreordain anyone to go there.

So the King James Bible is very accurate and specific in its choice of words?

Yes.

Can I find all this in any other Bible?

Not in a million years

Why haven't we had this explained before?

The Bible says people are unstable and wrest the scriptures to their own destruction

(2 Peter 3:16). Many people have already made up their mind what the Bible means and they refuse to let it tell them what it says.

So why couldn't Calvin see all this?

 I don't know, but God does.

Weren't Spurgeon and Whitefield Calvinists?

Unfortunately yes.

But aren't we 'called'?

Absolutely, but this calling takes place when we are in Jesus Christ. We are called to many things - 1Cor 1:9 1 Cor 5:11;1 Cor 7:15 1Tim 6:12 and so on.

How about predestination? Surely you can't deny this?

Of course not, but this is another thing that happens when you are IN Jesus Christ. "For whom he did foreknow, he also did PREDESTINATE TO BE CONFORMED TO THE IMAGE OF HIS SON,..." (Romans 8:29). You see, our destination is pre-determined once we are in Jesus Christ and this destination is to be conformed to his image.

Aren't we elected though?

Absolutely, but this again only happens once you are in Jesus Christ. Notice this election only happens through the sanctification of the Holy Spirit and this can't happen outside of Jesus Christ.

"Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, THROUGH SANCTIFICATION OF THE SPIRIT, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ:... "(1 Peter 1:2)

But we've all been led to believe that being called, elected, chosen and predestined all happens before you get saved.

I know. Isn't it amazing the tricks Satan gets up to - to take something so obvious and twist it around to mean the opposite.

So, give me a summary of what we've been talking about.

God has given everyone the free will to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ or not believe: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that WHOSOEVER believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. "(John 3:16).

Then after you are IN the Lord Jesus Christ, as a matter of course, you will be called, chosen, elected and predestined to be various things IN HIM. My dear friend, it's that's simple.

So why won't Calvinists believe this?

Only God knows. What the King James Bible clearly states is this:

For a person to be saved, God has given them the free will to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

So why won't people believe the plain English of the King James Bible?

That should be included as another mystery in the Bible. It beats me how they insist on ignoring what the Bible says while in the same breath, telling everybody what they think it means.

At the judgment seat of Christ and the great white throne, there'll be much weeping and wailing.
 

Harley Hitchcock
www.
AustralianBibleMinistries
.com

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