‘God casts His vote; Satan casts his, but you must cast the deciding ballot’?
The touchstone question in the running debate between Jesus and the
Pharisees, Paul and the Judaizers, Augustine and Pelagius, the
Dominicans and the Franciscans, the Reformers and the medieval Roman
Catholic church, and the Calvinists and Arminians is this: Who saves whom?
In this article I want to offer some brief scriptural responses to
the common objections concerning the doctrine of election. If one does
not believe in the doctrine of unconditional election, it is impossible
to have a high doctrine of grace. As Luther told Erasmus, ignorance of
this great truth is in a real sense ignorance of the Christian gospel.
‘For when the works and power of God are unknown in this way, I cannot
worship, praise, thank, and serve God, since I do not know how much I
ought to attribute to myself and how much to God.’ This distinction is
essential, he added, ‘if we want to live a godly life.’ Further, ‘If we
do not know these things, we shall know nothing at all of things
Christian and shall be worse than any heathen.’1 As Luther pointed out
in his debate with Erasmus, this issue of free will and election is
essential in maintaining the doctrine of justification by eliminating
any element of human decision or effort as a foothold for merit.
Therefore, let’s take a brief survey of the biblical support for this
important doctrine by considering one of the principal passages: Romans
chapter nine. Continue Reading...
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