{"id":5552,"date":"2020-02-02T08:10:08","date_gmt":"2020-02-02T08:10:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/?p=5552"},"modified":"2020-02-02T08:10:08","modified_gmt":"2020-02-02T08:10:08","slug":"bulletin-edition-january-2020-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/?p=5552","title":{"rendered":"Bulletin Edition January 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Does God Love Everyone?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In answering this question\nmany go straight to John 3:16 for the answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The verse reads \u201c For God so loved the world, that he gave his only\nbegotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have\neverlasting life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many will answer this question based on the verse\nand say \u2013 yes, God loves everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is that what this verse is saying?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anytime we look at the scripture we need to look\nat it in it`s context. The context gives us it`s meaning. Furthermore if we\nlook at this verse even in a casual way, we can quickly see that the last half\nof the verse qualifies the first half by the words \u201cThat whosoever believeth\u201d.\nThis clearly points to a specific type of person – Those who are believing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Greek fully translates this way;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor God loved the world in this way, that he gave\nhis only begotten Son, that the believing ones shall not perish, but have\neverlasting life\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So now we can see the true extent of this verse\nand it`s full meaning. There are countless examples in scripture that show that\nthe Lord God clearly discriminates, and there is nowhere in scripture that\nsupports the false notion that God loves everybody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

—-<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is absurd to\nrepresent Christ as paying a ransom sufficient for all, when he intended only\nto redeem some! Or to affirm that Christ is a sufficient Saviour of those whom\nhe never intended to save!  Whenever the Scriptures speak of the\nsufficiency of redemption, they always place it in the certain\nefficacy <\/em>of redemption. The atonement of Christ is sufficient because\nit is absolutely efficacious, and because it carries salvation to all for whom\nit was made. It is sufficient, not because it affords men the possibility <\/em>of\nsalvation but because, with invincible power, it accomplishes <\/em>their\nsalvation. Hence the word of God never represents the sufficiency <\/em>of\nthe atonement as more extensive than the design <\/em>of the\natonement, which Mr. Fuller has done. The Scriptures know nothing of a\nsufficient redemption which leaves the captive to perish in slavery, nor of a\nsufficient atonement which never delivers the guilty; but they speak of a\nredemption every way sufficient and efficacious\u2014a redemption which cannot be\nfrustrated, but which triumphantly accomplishes the salvation of all its objects.\n\u201cLet Israel hope in the Lord; for with the Lord there is mercy, and with\nhim plenteous redemption. <\/em>And he shall redeem Israel from all\nhis iniquities.\u201d Ps. 130: 7- 8.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Extract from William Rushton`s \u201c A Defence of Particular Redemption\u201d )<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new birth, and the\nsanctification of a sinner, are plainly ascribed to this, as the procuring\ncause, namely, that Christ died for that sinner. Thus Christ \u2015gave himself for\nhis church, that he might sanctify and cleanse it, with the washing of water by\nthe word.\u2016 [Eph. v. 26.] And again, the apostle says, \u2015Who gave himself for us\nthat he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purity unto himself a peculiar\npeople.\u2016 [Titus ii. 14.] Here we are taught not only that there is a connection\nbetween the death of Christ and the regeneration of those for whom he died, but\nalso that his death is the meritorious cause thereof. Rushton extract from A\nDEFENCE OF PARTICULAR REDEMPTION<\/p>\n\n\n\n

–<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regeneration-   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faith in Christ is the\ngift and operation of God in us, created in and bestowed upon chosen, redeemed\nsinners in regeneration by the irresistible power and grace of His Spirit (Eph.\n2:8; Phil. 1:29; Col. 2:12). This gift of faith is communicated to and wrought\nin God\u2019s elect through the instrumentality of gospel preaching (1 Cor. 1:18-\n24). With this gift of faith, every believer is given the abiding unction of\nthe Spirit by which we are given grace through the Word of God to know all\nthings spiritual (1 Cor. 2:12-16; 1 John 2:20-27).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christ saves his people\nfrom the power of their sins by the power of his Spirit in sovereign, effectual\nregeneration (John 5;25; Eph. 2:1-4 Psa. 65:4). As he raised Lazarus from the\ndead, so he raises his people from spiritual death to spiritual life by the\nomnipotence of his saving grace (John 5:25). The Lord Jesus saves his people\nfrom their sins by making his people righteous before God. In justification the\nrighteous obedience of Christ is imputed to us, just as our sins were imputed\nto him (2 Cor. 5:21). In sanctification his righteous nature is imparted to us\n(Gal 5:22-23; 2 Pet. 1:4; 1 John 3:5-10)  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regeneration, the new\nbirth, is his work (John 3:3-8). It is the Spirit of life who gives life to\ndead sinners. The revelation of Christ is the Spirit\u2019s work (John 16:13-14; 2\nCor. 4:6). We know Christ only as God the Holy Spirit makes him known to us and\nin us. We know the things of God only as he makes them known (1 Cor. 2:10-14).\nChosen, redeemed sinners are convinced of their sin, of righteousness\nestablished by Christ, and judgment finished by his blood atonement, only by\nthe almighty, efficacious grace of the Spirit of God. (John 16:8-11). Effectual\ncalling is the work of his omnipotent, irresistible grace (1 Thess. 1:4-5). As\nDavid sent Ziba to \u201cfetch\u201d Miphibosheth, so the Lord Jesus Christ, our King,\nsends his Spirit, at the appointed time of love, to \u201cfetch\u201d the objects of his\ncovenant love to himself. The fact that they are all by nature unwilling to be\nfetched is no difficulty with him. He is just an influencer. He is God the Holy\nSpirit. He makes the chosen willing in the day of his power and causes them to\ncome home to Christ (Ps. 65:4; 110:3). He converts those whom he calls and\neffectually gives them faith in Christ by the operations of his omnipotent\ngrace (Eph. 2:8-9; Col. 2:12). It is by the work of God the Holy Spirit that\nthe believer\u2019s life is ordered and protected, and preserved in this world unto\neternal glory<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Believers are people who\nhave been born again and live in the realm of the Spirit, the realm of faith\n(Rom. 8:5-9). God lives in us and we live in God. God the Holy Spirit takes up\nresidence in every believer permanently from the moment of regeneration. He\ndwells in every believer forever. He works in every believer continually. He is\nthe sanctifying influence of every believer\u2019s life. He is the earnest of our\ninheritance and gives us the assurance of salvation (Rom. 8:16; 2 Cor. 1:22;\nEph. 1:14). The Holy Spirit is the Comforter, the Teacher, the Illuminator, the\nUnction of God\u2019s saints in this world (John 14:16-18; 1 Cor. 2:9-12; Eph. 1:17;\n1 John 2:20, 27). He leads the believer in obedience and service to Christ\n(Rom. 8:14; Gal. 5:16; Acts 8:27, 29; Heb. 8:10). The Holy Spirit calls,\nqualifies, and equips men for special service in the kingdom of God (Acts\n13:2-4). He distributes spiritual gifts in the body of Christ as he will (1\nCor. 12:4-11). He gives us the power and grace to do what we are called of God\nto do (Acts 1:8; 1 Cor. 2:4; 1 Thess. 1:5). The Spirit of grace produces in\nevery believer the fruit of grace (Gal. 5:22-25). They are the produce of his\ngrace, not of our works. It is the Spirit who teaches us to pray according to\nthe will of God (2 Sam. 7:27; Rom. 8:26-27; Gal. 4:6). The Holy Spirit directs\nthe believer\u2019s heart in worship (John 4:23-24; Phil. 3:3). Extracts from Basic\nBible Doctrine \u2013 Don Fortner<\/p>\n\n\n\n

–<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Remember, the Holy Spirit\nis showing us why all things work together for good to them who love God, to\nthem who are the called according to His purpose. Adam\u2019s transgression and\nfall, evil as it was against God, was worked together for the good of God\u2019s\npeople. It was so that Christ, the last Adam, could receive all the glory for\nperfectly obeying God, unto the death of the cross, for His people. So Satan,\nsin, death and hell, all the ages of time, the wars between nations and people,\nthe rejection and crucifixion of God\u2019s own Son, your rebellion and mine, the\ngospel being brought to us, our being born again, all was worked together for\nour good by God according to His eternal purpose (Galatians 4:3-7; 2 Corinthians\n3:18). Clay Curtis<\/p>\n\n\n\n

–<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is a universally\naccepted fact that man has a free will. Men
\npride themselves in believing that they are able to override the power of God\nwith this all powerful \u201cfree will\u201d. This lie claims that in the final analysis\nman decides the destiny of his own soul, and that God has made himself subject\nto this irresistible force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If by \u201cfree will\u201d man\nbelieves that he is free, when given two or more options, to choose the one he\nwants, that is without dispute. As a matter of fact, that is always the case.\nWe could even go so far as to say that it is impossible to select an option\nthat is not your preference. When given an opportunity to select from among two\nor more possibilities we always choose the one for which we have the greatest inclination\nor desire. ALWAYS! Man\u2019s will is not free. It is subject to, yes in\nbondage to, his natural inclinations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therein lies the problem.\nIt is not in man\u2019s fallen, sinful nature to desire salvation God\u2019s way. John\n5:40 \u201cAnd ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.\u201d In choosing what he\nwants he always chooses against the light. John 3:19 \u201cAnd this is the\ncondemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather\nthan light, because their deeds were evil.\u201d It is impossible for man to force\nhis choice against his own will. He is in desperate need of a new nature; one\nthat is born from above. One that has as its only inclination a desire for\ncoming to the Christ of scripture. John 3:16 \u201cYe must be born again\u201d. Some will\nattempt to honor God by agreeing that He must give us a new heart, only to\ndethrone Him by saying that you must be willing to let Him. John 6:44 \u201cNo man\ncan come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You say, but doesn\u2019t the\nBible say \u2018whosoever will\u2019\u2026? Yes. But the problem is not with the whosoever, it\nis with the will.  Pastor Greg Elmquist<\/p>\n\n\n\n

—<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, I hold that there is in every Christian two natures, as distinct as\nwere the two natures of the God-Man Christ Jesus. There is one nature which\ncannot sin, because it is born of God\u2014a spiritual nature, coming directly from\nheaven, as pure and as perfect as God himself, who is the author of it; and\nthere is also in man that ancient nature which, by the fall of Adam, hath\nbecome altogether vile, corrupt, sinful, and devilish. There remains in the\nheart of the Christian a nature which cannot do that which is right, any more\nthan it could before regeneration, and which is as evil as it was before the\nnew birth\u2014as sinful, as altogether hostile to God’s laws, as ever it was\u2014a\nnature which, as I said before, is curbed and kept under by the new nature in a\ngreat measure, but which is not removed and never will be until this tabernacle\nof our flesh is broken down, and we soar into that land into which there shall never\nenter anything that defileth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The evil heart which still remaineth in the Christian, doth always, when\nit is not attacking or obstructing, still reign and dwell within\nhim<\/em>. My heart is just as bad when no evil emanates from it, as when it is\nall over vileness in its external developments. A volcano is ever a volcano;\neven when it sleeps, trust it not. A lion is a lion, even though he play like a\nkid; and a serpent, is a serpent, even though you may stroke it while for a\nseason it slumbers; there is still a venom in its sting when its azure scales\ninvite the eye. If it were possible that I could live for days without a single\ntemptation from my own heart to sin, it would be still just as evil as it was\nbefore; and it is always either displaying its vileness, or else preparing for\nanother display. It is either loading its cannon to shoot against us, or else\nit is positively at warfare with us. You may rest assured that the heart is\nnever other than it originally was; the evil nature is still evil; and when\nthere is no blaze, it is heaping up the wood, wherewith it is to blaze another\nday. It is gathering up from my joys, from my devotions, from my holiness, and\nfrom all I do, some materials to attack me at some future period. The evil\nnature is only evil, and that continually, without the slightest mitigation or\nelement of good. The new nature must always wrestle and fight with it; and when\nthe two natures are not wrestling and fighting, there is no truce between them.\nWhen they are not in conflict, still they are foes. We must not trust our heart\nat any time; even when it speaks most fair, we must call it liar; and when it\npretends to the most good, still we must remember its nature, for it is evil,\nand that continually. Spurgeon<\/p>\n\n\n\n

–<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nnew birth is a DIVINE and SUPERNATURAL\nwork.<\/strong> Holy ancestry does not\ninsure it, pious parentage does not convey it, human eloquence does not inspire\nit, moral persuasion does not produce it. As high as the heavens are above the\nearth, so high is the accomplishment of this work above created power. How\nclear does the Holy Spirit put this–“As many as received him, to them\ngave he power to become the sons of God, even to those who believe in his name.\nWho were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of\nman, but of God,” <\/em>(John 1:12, 13.) “That which is\nborn of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is\nspirit.” “Born again”<\/em>–marg., “born from above.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Octavius Winslow<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Does God Love Everyone? In answering this question many go straight to John 3:16 for the answer. The verse reads \u201c 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. Many will answer this question based on the verse […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5552","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bulletin-editions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5552","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5552"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5552\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5553,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5552\/revisions\/5553"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5552"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5552"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5552"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}