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Quite a number of years ago, I became more Reformed in my theology--perhaps the main point, becoming convinced of the fact that salvation is a monergistic work of God. It is He by Himself alone that regenerates our spirits by His Holy Spirit, so that we might repent and believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. If you are looking for a couple of good Reformed sites, check out monergism.com and ligonier.org. The Reformation Network, refnet.fm, is a great Christian radio station with Reformed bibilical teaching.
In the last few years, it came to me that God regenerates the elect unborn, infants, young children and mentally unsound also by His Holy Spirit, though they don't have the capability of repentance and faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Remember that John the Baptist was even filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in the womb. Recently, I found support for this belief in the Westminster Confession of Faith. In the article on Effectual Calling it is written:
III. Elect infants, dying in infancy, are regenerated, and saved by Christ, through the Spirit, [12] who works when, and where, and how He pleases: [13] so also are all other elect persons who are incapable of being outwardly called by the ministry of the Word. [14]
Here are the scriptural footnotes included:
[12] 1CO 14:14 For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful. [13] 1JO 5:14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us. [14] 1TI 2:1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; 2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. JOH 17:20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word. 2SA 7:29 Therefore now let it please thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may continue for ever before thee: for thou, O Lord God, hast spoken it: and with thy blessing let the house of thy servant be blessed for ever. RUT 4:12 And let thy house be like the house of Pharez, whom Tamar bare unto Judah, of the seed which the Lord shall give thee of this young woman.
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God is Not Against You - He Came on an All Out Rescue Mission to Save You
...in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them... 2 Cor 5:19
Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Acts 13:38
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I know better than to delete either of them since both are there.
I read "Letters From Prison" by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in which he offered what is to me an answer.
Jesus died for the sins of the WHOLE WORLD, therefore salvation is available to every soul.
Those who accept it are then, as you outline, saved by an act of God by His Holy Spirit.
Those who refuse are not included in salvation because they did not receive the salvation offered. They rejected it.
We understand that God has foreknowledge of who will and who won't accept His free gift, but to say He fore-elected some and not others is to destroy the free will teaching and salvation for the sins of the world.
To say everyone will be saved because Jesus died for their sins, EVEN IF they don't accept it, is also to pervert the Scriptures because that is not taught in the Texts.
What to me is evident is God's mercy for those, who because of young age or mental impairment, who did not reject His salvation because they did not hear or understand, that they are included in the "salvation for everyone," because they did NOT reject it."
Long ago I heard a preacher who said that he did not hear the Gospel until he was 29 years old. His contention was that if he had died he would not have been assigned to burning hell because he had not rejected salvation from Jesus. But that after THAT day he would have not been saved if he had rejected salvation.
I DO believe the Scriptures teach of Election of some persons like John The Baptiser, and some others.
I am never really clear on a few doctrinal statements in Scripture but I do find Dietrich Bonhoeffer's explanation to help FIT the two issues of Election and Free Will together.
Thanks for your article.