Here is an excellent reply by Brother “Wildboar” to Stacy. Excellent:
You set up a silly straw man talking about “rape“.
The Scriptures are clear that God’s people shall be WILLING in the day of his power (Ps 110). And God works in people to will and to do of his good pleasure (Phil 2). God opened Lydia’s heart and God opens the understanding and God gives faith (Acts 16/Luke 24/Eph 1&2).
Believers are not doing something that they do not want to do. God uses the foolishness of preaching. He works through the hearing of the word. Of course! But the point is, HE IS THE ONE that causes a person to understand and believe and “trust“. If God does not do it, then all people will just continue going their own way and not seek after God as romans three makes so clear. Dear friend, your big stumbling block is that you are misunderstanding God’s “sovereign“ activity in the lives of human beings. God does not make us do things that we do not want to do.
But rather, he influences and changes our inclinations and desires and then we willingly do the things. But God gets the credit for all of it.
Here is a simple question that I want you to think about and answer.
Why do some people “receive the gift of salvation“ and other people do not?
Why do some people believe and some people do not?
What was going on inside that person who did not comply?
And if you comply, you are giving yourself credit and lifting yourself above that person who did not comply.
This is so plain.
Because Christ died for the sins of Adam’s entire race, it means that all people will eventually be reconciled to God. It’s guaranteed.
Christ’s work was perfect and sufficient. That’s why God raised His Son from the dead.
Christ’s work on the cross was perfect. It will bring everybody back to God in due time.
If you say that some people will be “in hell forever“ or “punished forever” or “annihilated” etc, then you are saying that Christ’s work is lacking.
It’s that simple.
Christ is the Great Savior of the world.
He is the successful Great Last Adam who answered for all of the sin and death that the first Adam brought.
These things are plain. Hallelujah, it is good news indeed.
Christ crucified is not some kind of a “deal“ or some kind of an “offer”. Mankind is a dying sinner who desires sin.
There is none who seeks God…they are all gone out of the way (Rom 3:10-18).
We all desire sin. Adam separated me from God and brought me into sin and death apart from my consent.
And so, the Last Adam Christ died for my sins apart from my consent.
It worked. It’s guaranteed. Christ died for our sins and was entombed and God raised him the third day. Pure perfection. It worked.
He’s a Great Savior. For the last 2000 years people still feel pain and get diseases and die even though Christ died for everybody’s sins.
The benefits of Christ’s perfect work on the cross have not all been dispensed yet. God is unfolding all of it through the ages. Right NOW, in this age/eon, “believing” the evangel of Christ is a gift of God.
Nobody seeks after God and believes the evangel of Christ unless God draws and calls and opens the understanding and gives faith. If God does not intervene then we would all be as Sodom.
These things are plain.
If you believe that Christ was successful 2000 years ago, why boast that you are believing of your own power and lift yourself above billions of unbelievers?
The death of Christ for our sins and his resurrection, answer everything. He took care of everything. His work is not lacking. He walked the earth and lived his life as the spotless sinless perfect Son of God.
And then, God made HIM a sin offering that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
The work that Christ accomplished 2000 years ago guarantees that all of Adam’s race will be brought back to God. Guaranteed.
The Ace Theological Company 