Romans922
Puritan Board Professor
Respond to this:
Many people say that John was writing to exclusively Jews in all of his epistles. How do you know this? From what I've researched, 1 John appears to be a circular letter (there is no address at the beginning) meant for the edification for all the saints. I highly doubt that John would write a circular letter intended and addressed for Jews only ... and not say anything about it!
"If Christ dies for all, He atones for all, He takes on the wrath for all, all are saved."
And herein lies the logical argument, that if God in any way, shape or form dies for all, He is constrained to follow through on the atonement, the removal of wrath, and save. And while it may make sense logically, I don't see that God is necessarily constrained by this. You are making an argument based on logic, and so I will make an argument based on logic, as well as Old Testament foreshadows, to show that this is not a logical impossibility.
Why is it an impossibility for God to die for all, and yet not save all? Sure, it may not make logical sense to us, but who are we to say that God wouldn't do this? And Ware gives ample reasons why God may have done it that way.
Here's an Old Testament example for you: was God pleased with the sacrificial offerings in the Old Covenant? Often times, He was not. Why was this? Was it because the sacrifice wasn't offered on behalf of the people? No, the offering was given on behalf of the entire assembly of Israel. God was not pleased with the offering because the people were not faithful.
In the same way, couldn't you say that Jesus sacrificed Himself on behalf of all people, and yet God was not pleased to forgive some of the people because they were not faithful?
There definitely is a sense that redemption is accomplished at the cross, but there is also a sense that it is not fully applied. For example, the elect are still at enmity of God until they are converted, even though Christ had already paid for their sins. God does not apply Christ's righteousness to their account until they are converted. What, then, prevents God from making a sacrifice on behalf of sinners that he never applies to their account?
Many people say that John was writing to exclusively Jews in all of his epistles. How do you know this? From what I've researched, 1 John appears to be a circular letter (there is no address at the beginning) meant for the edification for all the saints. I highly doubt that John would write a circular letter intended and addressed for Jews only ... and not say anything about it!
"If Christ dies for all, He atones for all, He takes on the wrath for all, all are saved."
And herein lies the logical argument, that if God in any way, shape or form dies for all, He is constrained to follow through on the atonement, the removal of wrath, and save. And while it may make sense logically, I don't see that God is necessarily constrained by this. You are making an argument based on logic, and so I will make an argument based on logic, as well as Old Testament foreshadows, to show that this is not a logical impossibility.
Why is it an impossibility for God to die for all, and yet not save all? Sure, it may not make logical sense to us, but who are we to say that God wouldn't do this? And Ware gives ample reasons why God may have done it that way.
Here's an Old Testament example for you: was God pleased with the sacrificial offerings in the Old Covenant? Often times, He was not. Why was this? Was it because the sacrifice wasn't offered on behalf of the people? No, the offering was given on behalf of the entire assembly of Israel. God was not pleased with the offering because the people were not faithful.
In the same way, couldn't you say that Jesus sacrificed Himself on behalf of all people, and yet God was not pleased to forgive some of the people because they were not faithful?
There definitely is a sense that redemption is accomplished at the cross, but there is also a sense that it is not fully applied. For example, the elect are still at enmity of God until they are converted, even though Christ had already paid for their sins. God does not apply Christ's righteousness to their account until they are converted. What, then, prevents God from making a sacrifice on behalf of sinners that he never applies to their account?
