A Christmas Prayer...

Today is Christmas. Most importantly it is the day in which many people celebrate the first advent of Jesus Christ. For most of us it also is a time to celebrate family and be with our loved ones. It is no different for me.

This morning I am watching Fox and Friends on the Fox News Channel. They just showed a video package that really pulled on my heart and caused this bearded boy to cry. It was a video of families greeting their loved ones. Loved ones who have been away from their families in a far away land for a long time. These men and women who were welcomed home for Christmas by their husbands, wives, kids, and other loved ones are members of the United States Armed Forces.

These folks are just like you and I, except they have committed their time and their lives to establishing, protecting, and defending freedom at home and abroad, even on Christmas Day. Some of these are men and women who have not seen those they love for a long time. Instead of gift-wrapped presents, they have and will receive bullets fired at them and mortars raining down around them during this time when we celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace.

Some have been busy defending freedom and liberty instead of celebrating the birth of a child they have never seen or instead of mourning a family member who has passed on while they are away. Some have been establishing a political culture of democracy in the Middle East while their wive struggle with not having a husband around to fulfill the role of a husband and their kids struggle with remembering what it feels like to have daddy at home, giving them a hug, and tucking them into bed every night.

My prayer for Christmas is this:

Lord God - I thank You for Your love and Your grace. I thank You for the gift of your Son, Who set aside His glorious life in Heaven so that He might come to earth, bring glory to You, and to make permanent atonement for those who You chose before the foundation of the world.

As all good things flow from You, I also thank You for the opportunity to be with my family on this day. However, there are those who are unable to be with their loved ones for various reasons during this Christmas season. I ask that You would be their comfort in this difficult time and that You will allow them to be with their families again. Most of all, I recognize that You are the Sovereign Ruler over all of creation and that nothing happens outside of Your direction and/or permission, and with that recognition I ask that Your will be done and that everything that ever happens will bring glory to You in the end.

Once again, I thank You for everything that is, was, and will be. I love You and I look forward to the day when I can spend Christmas Day with You in Your presence. I say and ask these things in the most beautiful name of Jesus...Amen.

As for those of you who are reading, have Merry Christmas and Soli Deo Gloria!

The Peaceful Transfer of Power - Air Force One. Dallas TX, November 22, 1963

In our first edition of "The Peaceful Transfer of Power", we will take a look at the first swearing-in of Lyndon Baines Johnson.

On the morning of November 22, 1963 Lyndon Johnson was the Vice President of the United States under President John F. Kennedy. Johnson was chosen by Kennedy to be his V.P. candidate in 1960 to help his campaign win the southern states in the country. As a Catholic from Massachusetts, JFK knew that if he was going to win the Presidency he would need a man with Johnson's southern reputation like Johnson to get the votes he needed. Kennedy and Johnson won the election of 1960 and went on to the White House.

Johnson, a member of the House of Representatives from Texas from 1937 to 1949, and a Senator from Texas from 1949 to 1961, was used to getting alot done in the halls of congress throughout his political career. One he ascended to the Vice-Presidency, however, he was held under with no real power and little to no influence in the JFK administration.

In late November of 1963, Kennedy was already campaigning for reelection in the vote of '64. He chose to go to Texas and capitalize on his association with the "hometown boy." On the afternoon of November 22, Kennedy's Presidential motorcade rolled through the streets of Dallas amid the cheers from a crowd that Kennedy held in the palm of his hand. Riding with President & Mrs. Kennedy was Texas Governor, John Connally and his wife, Nellie. Vice-President Johnson rode in a car behind the President's.

After turning onto Elm St. heading into Dealey Plaza, Nellie Connally remarked to President Kennedy "Mr. President, you can't say Dallas doesn't love you." Right after these words were spoken, shots rang out from crowd noise and blood splattered everywhere in the Presidential limousine. The President had been hit and it was looking gruesome. The motorcade swiftly got out of Dealey Plaza and rushed to Parkland Memorial Hospital. Once inside, the medical staff did all they could to save the young President, but it was too late. At 1:00 PM CST, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy was pronounced dead. Johnson was at the hospital at that moment.

The U.S. Constitution provides that should the president die or become disabled while in office, the "powers and duties" of the office are transferred to the Vice President. Thus, at the moment of President Kennedy's death, Lyndon Baines Johnson became the President of the United States.


After leaving the hospital, President Johnson and a small group of reporters rushed to Love Field in Dallas where Air Force One was parked. Johnson had been on the phone with Attorney General Robert Kennedy (brother of the slain President) moments earlier and was told to take the oath before getting airborn. Once inside the plane, Johnson requested Federal District Judge Sarah Hughes of Dallas to come to the plane to administer the oath. With her husbands body now on the plane, the newly widowed Jacqueline Kennedy sent word that she wished to attend but needed a few minutes to compose herself.


Mrs. Kennedy entered the conference room aboard the plane, still in the two-piece, blood stained, pink wool suit she had worn in the motorcade. Johnson took her gently by the hand, placing her to his left. Mrs. Johnson stood on his right. With the heat inside the plane being unbearable, Johnson asked for a glass of ice water. A Bible could not be found on the plane but President Kennedy's personal catholic missal was found and was prepared for Johnson to place his hand upon. Once the microphone and the cameraman were in place, Johnson placed his left hand on the missal and raised his right and Lyndon Baines Johnson took the Presidential Oath of Office.


The days following this historic moment were filled with sadness, confusion, and questions. It is my personal belief that President Kennedy's assassination was orchestrated by Johnson and a group of conspirators. Regardless, Johnson has been looked on by Democrats with high regard and historians rank him fairly well.

Today at Love Field, there is almost nothing to remind us of the historic events that transpired in it's bounds. The area where Air Force One sat there is now a part of a DHL shipping operation.

The plane, SAM 26000, then known as Air Force One, was retired from serving Presidents in 1998. It is now a part of an exhibit on Presidential aircraft at the National Museum of the United States Air Force where it has been opened up for tours. The interior has been restored to it's appearance during the Johnson Presidency.

The Peaceful Transfer of Power - Introduction

On January 20, 2009, Barack Hussein Obama II will (weather permitting) stand on the West Front of the United States Capitol and take the Oath of Office to become the 44th President of the United States. Ever since George Washington became our nation's first President, every man to hold the highest elected office in our land has marked his ascension to power by reciting the following 35 words as prescribed by the United States Constitution.

"I (, full name typically inserted here,) do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

This ceremony and all of the hype that usually comes along with it is often referred to as The Inauguration. As of 2008, the Presidential Oath of Office has been recited by 42 different men on 69 different occasions. Five of those times, the Oath was taken twice by the same man to initiate the same term for different reasons between the five occurrences. 24 different locations have played host to the event in or around 10 different buildings and 1 aircraft. These locations have been in 6 different cities, in 4 different states and 1 federal district.

With all of this information, you can probably tell that the Inaugural ceremony has not always been as "cut and dried" as it may seem. Certainly the Inaugurations we see on TV today have been well scripted events but it is not always so rehearsed. Death, weather, mystery and other circumstances have made the history of taking "the Oath" an interesting subject for me to study over the past month and now I will begin relaying some of these interesting little facts to anyone who cares to read my blog. Starting with a new blog later today we will take a look at every Presidential Inauguration by location. We will start with the one that took place the furthest away from the West Front of the United States Capitol and work our way around to the place where President-Elect Obama will presumably stand to take the Oath of Office. Stay tuned for later today when we take a look at what may have been the least "peaceful transfer of power" this country has ever seen.

It is Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is upon us again. Personally I am celebrating my 24th Thanksgiving and it's been 387 years since the traditional first Thanksgiving at Plymouth Plantation in Massachusetts.

As I reflect on the year and the years gone by I could compile a huge list of the people, places, and things I am thankful for and to. I'll not list everyone/thing, but here is a short list.

I am thankful to our sovereign God, not only for what He does for me, but what he does to me most of all. I am thankful for God's sovereignty over all things.

I am thankful for/to my earthly family.

I am thankful for/to my family that God has so graciously grafted me into.

I am thankful for my job. It's not much, but it's more than some people have.

Now for a short list of specifics...

I'm thankful for...
- my Dad: that he is still with us for another Thanksgiving and has always been a real life super hero to me. Even in all of his weakness, his strength and God's strength in him shine through brighter than ever.

- my Mom: for being strong when no one else can be and for holding everything at the home front together.

- The Young (Ryan, Hillary, Kenzie, Riah, and Truth) and the Edwards (Aaron, Danielle, Natalie, and the to-be-born/unnamed baby) families: for welcoming me into their lives and for being wonderful examples of Christ in this world and in my life.

- Boo: for being the best big brother I could ever have. Even though you prayed for me to be, you are just as much a blessing to me.

- Joe: for being my other "big" brother. It's an honor and a privilege to know you and to be considered your friend. Thanks for letting me share in so many of your life experiences and for having me over to play Rock Band all the time :)

- my nieces (Savannah and Jaclyn) and nephew (Jordan): for keeping things light and just being kids. They force us all to be a bit younger.

- my cousin Starla: for all of her prayers, love, and friendship. She's always been there when I needed her, regardless of the many distances between us.

- Brandon, Josh, Matt, Kat, Mel, and Johnny: you guys help me stay sane and have been the some of the best friends God could have given me. Even if we don't hang out and talk everyday, I know that I can count on you guys to have my back if I needed you to stand beside me in a fight or to catch me if I fall.

...and with slight humor I also add...

Harmonix: for creating such a fun game to play whether it's just me or it's with friends.

I'm thankful for you taking the time to read this, and till next time, be thankful...

What Happened Whensday: September 24, 2008

This is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 98 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events:

622 - Prophet Muhammad completes his hegira from Mecca to Medina.

1180 - Manuel I Komnenos, last Emperor of the Komnenian restoration dies. The Byzantine Empire slips into terminal decline.

1664 - The Netherlands surrenders New Amsterdam to England.

1789 - The office of the Attorney General of the United States of America, and the United States Post Office Department, are established.

1841 - The Sultan of Brunei cedes Sarawak to Britain.

1852 - The first airship powered by (a steam) engine, created by Henri Giffard, travels 17 miles (27 km) from Paris to Trappes.

1869 - "Black Friday": Gold prices plummet after Ulysses S. Grant orders the Treasury to sell large quantities of gold after Jay Gould and James Fisk plot to control the market.

1877 - Battle of Shiroyama, decisive victory of the Imperial Japanese Army over the Satsuma Rebellion

1890 - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially renounces polygamy.

1903 - Edmund Barton steps down as Prime Minister of Australia and is succeeded by Alfred Deakin.

1906 - U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt proclaims Devils Tower the nation's first National Monument.

1935 - Earl Bascom and Weldon Bascom produce the first rodeo ever held outdoors under electric lights at Columbia, Mississippi

1946 - Cathay Pacific Airways is founded in Hong Kong

1947 - Majestic 12 is allegedly established by secret executive order of President Harry Truman

1948 - The Honda Motor Company is founded.

1950 - Forest fires black out the sun over portions of Canada and New England. A Blue moon (in the astronomical sense) is seen as far away as Europe.

1957 - Camp Nou, the largest stadium in Europe, is opened in Barcelona.
1957 - President Dwight D. Eisenhower sends 101st Airborne Division troops to Little Rock, Arkansas, to enforce desegregation.

1962 - United States court of appeals orders the University of Mississippi to admit James Meredith.

1973 - Guinea-Bissau declares its independence from Portugal.

1990 - Periodic Great White Spot observed on Saturn

1994 - National League for Democracy is formed by Aung San Suu Kyi and various others to help fight against dictatorship in Myanmar.

1996 - U.S. President Bill Clinton signs the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty at the United Nations.

2005 - Hurricane Rita makes landfall in the United States, devastating Beaumont, Texas and portions of southwestern Louisiana.


Births

1725 - Sir Arthur Guinness, Irish brewer (d. 1803)
1755 - John Marshall, 4th Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1835)
1921 - Jim McKay, American sportscaster (d. 2008)
1936 - Jim Henson, American puppeteer (d. 1990)
1941 - Linda McCartney, American singer (d. 1998)
1945 - Lou Dobbs, American journalist
1946 - "Mean" Joe Greene, American football player
1961 - Allen Bestwick, Nascar broadcaster
1965 - Sean McNabb, American bassist (Quiet Riot, Great White, Rough Cutt, House of Lords)
1976 - Stephanie McMahon-Levesque, American professional wrestler


[edit] Deaths

366 - Pope Liberius
1143 - Pope Innocent II

What Happened Whensday: September 17, 2008

This is the 260th day of the year (261st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 105 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events:

1176 - The Battle of Myriokephalon is fought.

1462 - The Battle of Świecino (or Battle of Żarnowiec) is fought during Thirteen Years' War.

1577 - Peace of Bergerac signed between Henry III of France and the Huguenots.

1630 - The city of Boston, Massachusetts, is founded.

1631 - Sweden wins a major victory at the Battle of Breitenfeld against the Holy Roman Empire during the Thirty Years War.

1776 - The Presidio of San Francisco is founded in New Spain.

1778 - Treaty of Fort Pitt signed, the first formal treaty between the United States and a Native American tribe (the Lenape or Delaware).

1787 - The United States Constitution is signed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1809 - Peace between Sweden and Russia in the Finnish War. The territory to become Finland is ceded to Russia by the Treaty of Fredrikshamn.

1814 - Francis Scott Key finishes his The Star-Spangled Banner poem.

1859 - Joshua A. Norton declares himself Emperor Norton I of the United States.

1862 - American Civil War: George B. McClellan halts the northward drive of Robert E. Lee's Confederate army in the single-day Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest day in American history.
1862 - American Civil War: The Allegheny Arsenal explosion resulted in the single largest civilian disaster during the war

1894 - Battle of Yalu River, the largest naval engagement of the First Sino-Japanese War.

1900 - Philippine-American War: Filipinos under Juan Cailles defeat Americans under Colonel Benjamin F. Cheatham at Mabitac.

1908 - The Wright Flyer flown by Orville Wright, with Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge as passenger, crashes; killing Selfridge. He becomes the first airplane fatality.

1914 - Andrew Fisher becomes Prime Minister of Australia for the third time.

1916 - World War I: Manfred von Richthofen ("The Red Baron"), a flying ace of the German Luftstreitkräfte, won his first aerial combat near Cambrai, France.

1920 - Sports: National Football League is organized in Canton, Ohio, United States.

1924 - The Border Defence Corps was established in the Second Polish Republic for the defence of the eastern border against armed Soviet raids and local bandits.

1928 - The Okeechobee Hurricane strikes southeastern Florida, killing upwards of 2,500 people. It is the third deadliest natural disaster in US history, behind the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

1939 - The Soviet Union joined Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland during the Polish Defensive War of 1939.
1939 - World War II: A German U-boat U 29 sinks the British aircraft carrier HMS Courageous.

1941 - A decree of the Soviet State Committee of Defense, restoring Vsevobuch in the face of the Great Patriotic War, was issued

1943 - Russian city of Bryansk liberated from Nazis.

1944 - Allied Airborne troops parachute into the Netherlands as the "Market" half of Operation Market Garden.

1947 - James V. Forrestal was sworn in as the first Secretary of Defense of United States.

1948 - Lehi (also known as the Stern gang) assassinates Count Folke Bernadotte, who was appointed by the UN to mediate between the Arabs and Jews.

1949 - The Canadian steamship SS Noronic burns in Toronto Harbor with the loss of over 118 lives.

1956 - Television was first broadcast in Australia.

1957 - The North East Humanists group was founded in Newcastle upon Tyne.

1970 - Fighting breaks out along the Syria-Jordanian border between Jordanian troops and the fedayeen.

1976 - The first Space Shuttle, Enterprise, was unveiled by NASA.

1978 - The Camp David Accords were signed by Israel and Egypt.

1980 - After weeks of strikes at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk, Poland, the nationwide independent trade union Solidarity is established.
1980 - Former Nicaraguan President Anastasio Somoza Debayle is killed in Asunción, Paraguay.

1981 - ProWrestling: Ric Flair defeated Dusty Rhodes for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship

1983 - Vanessa Williams becomes the first black Miss America.

1991 - North Korea, South Korea, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Marshall Islands and Micronesia join the United Nations.
1991 - The first version of the Linux kernel (0.01) is released to the Internet.

1993 - Last Russian troops leave Poland.

2000 - ProWrestling: Booker T defeated Kevin Nash for the WCW World Heaveyweight Championship

2003 - ProWrestling: Brock Lesnar defeated Kurt Angle for the WWE Championship

2004 - Tamil is declared the first classical language in India.

2007 - AOL, once the largest ISP in the U.S., officially announces plans to refocus the company as an advertising business and to relocate its corporate headquarters from Dulles, Virginia to New York, New York.


Births:

1550 - Pope Paul V (d. 1621)
1907 - Warren Burger, 15th Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1995)
1923 - Hank Williams, American musician (d. 1953)
1928 - Roddy McDowall, English actor (d. 1998)
1931 - Anne Bancroft, American actress (d. 2005)
1945 - Phil Jackson, American basketball player and NBA head coach
1948 - John Ritter, American actor (d. 2003)
1963 - Masahiro Chono, Japanese professional wrestler
1965 - Bryan Singer, American director
1969 - Keith Flint, Member of the British band The Prodigy
1974 - Rasheed Wallace, American basketball player
1975 - Jimmie Johnson, American race car driver


Deaths:

1899 - Charles Alfred Pillsbury, American industrialist (b. 1842)
1996 - Spiro Agnew, Vice President of the United States (b. 1918)
1997 - Red Skelton, American actor and comedian (b. 1913)
2006 - Patricia Kennedy Lawford, American socialite (b. 1924)

9/11: Today We Remember and We Shall Never Forget

Seven years ago today our nation and her citizens were attacked by radical Muslim terrorists in New York City, Washington D.C. and Somerset County, PA.

Nearly 3000 people were killed and over 6200 people were injured. I pray that God will comfort those who still grieve the loss of their loved ones.

Everything happens for a reason, and I know that while we may never see it in this lifetime, God has and will be glorified in light of and through the tragic events of that day.

May God bless the victims who survived, the families of the victims who did not, and may God continue to bless America.

In all things to God be the glory.


**Edit**
My 9/11 Story:

On Tuesday, September 11, 2001, I got up and went to school as I had the day before. It was the early days of my senior year at Word of Life Christian Academy. A little bit after 9:30 AM, as I sat at my desk, I noticed my teacher and several of my classmates acting sorta weird. These classmates were relatives of my teacher. They had looks of worry and fear on their faces. I took it upon myself to ask the teacher what was going on. She told me that everything was fine and to go back to my desk. I knew that she was feeding me a line of shit (no offense Mrs. Cadzow, I still love ya!).

After another 15 minutes passed I got up and told the teacher that I wanted to see my Mom, who was working in the kitchen to prepare lunches. On my way out, a different teacher stopped me crying and asked me if I was coming to the principal's office to pray. I asked her what was going on. She told me that people were ramming jets into buildings and that they had hit the World Trade Center towers. At the time, I wasn't even sure what the WTC towers looked like. She also said that the Pentagon had been hit and the White House could be next. We went to the principal's office where every staff member (all 10 of them) was huddled around the radio waiting for the newest CBS News Alert. After that we all paused and and prayed for God's protection and grace.

My Mom and I left at about 10:30 AM to go home and be with my Dad and Ms. Sandy (a lady who lived with us at the time). The rest of the day was spent in shock, horror, sadness, disbelief, and towards the end, being pissed off as I sat and watched these events unfold.

Last October, I had the pleasure of visiting the Gerald Ford Presidential Museum. While looking at many items of historical significance, I noticed an old-looking, rusty piece of steel on a stand in a corner. I wasn't really interested in it at first, but my brother says "Hey, what is that?" as he points to the object. I walked over and only after reading the tag under it did I realize that I was looking at a piece of I-beam from one of the WTC towers. I was in awe and somewhat reverent of this piece of national history and horror that was my generations "Day of Infamy." I leave you today with a photo of that very piece of American history.

What Happened Whensday: September 10, 2008

This is the 253rd day of the year (254th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 112 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events:

506 - The bishops of Visigothic Gaul meet in the Council of Agde.

1419 - John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy is assassinated by adherents of the Dauphin, the future Charles VII of France.

1608 - John Smith is elected council president of Jamestown, Virginia.

1776 - American Revolutionary War: Nathan Hale volunteers to spy.

1798 - At the Battle of St. George's Caye, British Honduras defeats Spain.

1813 - The U.S. defeats the British Fleet at the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812.

1823 - Simón Bolívar is named President of Peru.

1846 - Elias Howe gets a patent for the sewing machine.

1858 - George Mary Searle discovers the asteroid 55 Pandora.

1897 - Lattimer Massacre - a sheriff's posse kills twenty unarmed immigrant miners in Pennsylvania, United States.

1898 - Empress Elizabeth of Austria is assassinated by Luigi Lucheni.

1919 - Austria and the Allies sign the Treaty of Saint-Germain recognizing the independence of Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia.

1927 - Sports: France had its first Davis Cup win, though it had competed since 1905.

1932 - The New York City Subway's third competing subway system, the municipally-owned IND, is opened.

1939 - World War II: The submarine HMAS Oxley is mistakenly sunk by the submarine HMS Triton near Norway and becomes the Royal Navy's first loss.
1939 - Canada declares war on Nazi Germany, joining France, the UK, New Zealand and Australia in the Allies.

1942 - World War II: The British carry out an amphibious landing on Madagascar to re-launch Allied offensive operations in the Madagascar Campaign.

1943 - World War II: German forces begin their occupation of Rome.

1945 - Mike the Headless Chicken is decapitated; he survives for another 18 months before choking to death.

1951 - United Kingdom began an economic boycott of Iran.

1961 - Italian Grand Prix, a crash causes the death of German driver Wolfgang von Trips and 13 spectators hit by his Ferrari.

1963 - 20 African-American students enter public schools in Alabama.

1966 - Music: "The Last Train to Clarksville" was released by the Monkees.

1967 - The people of Gibraltar vote to remain a British dependency rather than becoming part of Spain.

1972 - Sports: The United States loses its first international basketball game in a disputed match against the Soviet Union at Munich, Germany.

1974 - Guinea-Bissau gains independence from Portugal.

1976 - A British Airways Hawker Siddeley Trident and an Inex-Adria DC-9 collide near Zagreb, Yugoslavia, killing 176.

1977 - Last execution by Guillotine in France. Hamida Djandoubi, convicted for torture and murder.

1980 - Pro-Wrestling: Harley Race defeated Shohei Baba for the NWA Heavyweight Wrestling title

1990 - The Basilica of Our Lady of Peace in Yamoussoukro, Côte d'Ivoire – the largest church in Africa is consecrated by Pope John Paul II.
1990 - TV: Will Smith made his debut in "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air."

2000 - Cats closes on Broadway.

2002 - Switzerland, noted as a neutral country, joins the United Nations.

2003 - Anna Lindh, the foreign minister of Sweden, is stabbed fatally while shopping, and dies of her wounds on September 11.

2007 - Former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif returns to Pakistan after seven years in exile, following a military coup in October 1999.


Births:

1487 - Pope Julius III, Italian Roman Catholic Pope (d. 1555)
1638 - Maria Theresa of Spain, queen of Louis XIV of France (d. 1683)
1914 - Robert Wise, American film director (d. 2005)
1917 - Miguel Serrano, Chilean author and diplomat
1918 - Rin Tin Tin, German shepherd dog (d. 1932)
1929 - Arnold Palmer, American golfer
1934 - Roger Maris, American baseball player (d. 1985)
1948 - Charlie Waters, American football player
1949 - Don Muraco, professional wrestler
1949 - Bill O'Reilly, American journalist and commentator
1950 - Joe Perry, American musician (Aerosmith)
1963 - Randy Johnson, American baseball player
1963 - Bill Stevenson, American music producer and musician
1965 - Robin Goodridge, English rock drummer (Bush)
1968 - Guy Ritchie, British film director
1974 - Ryan Phillippe, American actor
1974 - Ben Wallace, American basketball player
1980 - Mikey Way, American musician (My Chemical Romance)
1984 - Matthew Followill, guitarist of American rock band Kings Of Leon
1989 - Sanjaya Malakar, TV show contestant


Deaths:

210 BC - Qin Shi Huang, first emperor of China.
918 - Count Baldwin II of Flanders (b. 865)
954 - King Louis IV of France (b. 920)
1167 - Empress Matilda, wife of Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1102)
1197 - Henry II of Champagne (b. 1166)
1519 - John Colet, English churchman and educator
1997 - Jack Adkisson, professional wrestler, aka 'Fritz Von Erich' (b. 1929)
2006 - Daniel Wayne Smith, son of Playboy model Anna Nicole Smith (b. 1986)
2007 - Jane Wyman, American actress, first wife of Ronald Reagan (b.1917)

Remembering: "Killer" Kowalski

The Doctrines of Grace - The Perseverance of the Saints

Definition of Perseverance from the Westminster Confession of Faith

17.1 They, whom God hath accepted in His Beloved, effectually called and sanctified by His Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace; but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.
17.2 This perseverance of the saints depends not upon their own free will, but upon the immutability of the decree of election, flowing from the free and unchangeable love of God the Father; upon the efficacy of the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ; the abiding of the Spirit, and of the seed of God within them; and the nature of the covenant of grace: from all which ariseth also the certainty and infallibility thereof.
17.3 Nevertheless, they may, through the temptations of Satan and of the world, the prevalence of corruption remaining in them, and the neglect of the means of their preservation, fall into grievous sins; and, for a time, continue therein: whereby they incur God's displeasure, and grieve His Holy Spirit, come to be deprived of some measure of their graces and comforts; have their hearts hardened, and their consciences wounded; hurt and scandalize others, and bring temporal judgments upon themselves.


We Must Persevere in Faith if We Are to Be Finally Saved

1 Corinthians 15:1-2
Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.

There is a kind of believing that is in vain.


Colossians 1:21-23
And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach – if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.


These two verses say that if we will hold fast in faith there is eternal security. Progressive sanctification is evidence of salvation.


2 Timothy 2:11-13 (Endurance in faith is key)
It is a trustworthy statement: For if we died with Him, we will also live with Him; If we endure, we will also reign with Him; If we deny Him, He also will deny us; If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.

Mark 13:13 (Jesus points to endurance in faith)
You will be hated by all because of My name, but the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.


The Obedience or Holiness That Comes from Faith Is Necessary for Final Salvation

Hebrews 12:14
Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.

Romans 8:13 (We must fight against the flesh with spirit)
If you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

Galatians 5:19-21
Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

1 Corinthians 6:9-10
Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.

Ephesians 5:3-5
But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints; and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

1 John 2:3-6
By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.

1 John 3:6-10
No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him. Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.

1 John 3:14
We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death.

1 John 4:20
If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.

John 8:31
So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine.”


Those Whom God Has Justified Will Be Kept by God for Final Salvation

Romans 8:28-32
And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He
foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?

John 10:26-30
But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are one.

Can you jump out of God’s hand? If so then God can’t keep you and the text has no meaning.


1 Peter 1:3-5
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

1 Peter 5:8-10
Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world. After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.

Jude 1:24-25
Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24
Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.

1 Corinthians 1:8-9
[Our Lord Jesus Christ] will also confirm you to the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Ephesians 1:13-14
In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation — having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of [God's own] possession, to the praise of His glory.

Jeremiah 32:40
I will make an everlasting covenant with them that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will put the fear of Me in their hearts so that they will not turn away from Me.

Philippians 1:6
For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 2:12-13
So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

Hebrews 13:20-21
Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

2 Timothy 4:18
The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.


Falling Away from Faith and Holiness Shows that We Never Belonged to Christ

This is speaking of a decisive or prolonged falling away. Christians will still sin and have huge battles of faith and holiness in the process of sanctification.

1 John 2:19
They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.

1 John 3:6
No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him.

Hebrews 3:13
But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end.


Therefore, Let Us Be Earnest to Make Our Calling and Election Sure

2 Peter 1:10
Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble.

1 Timothy 6:12
Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

2 Timothy 4:7-8
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.

What Happened Whensday: September 3, 2008

Today is the 246th day of the year (247th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 119 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events:

36 BC - In the Battle of Naulochus, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, admiral of Octavian, defeats Sextus Pompeius, son of Pompey, thus ending Pompeian resistance to the Second Triumvirate.

301 - San Marino, one of the smallest nations in the world and the world's oldest republic still in existence, is founded by Saint Marinus.

1189 - Richard I of England (a.k.a. Richard "the Lionheart") is crowned at Westminster.

1260 - The Mamluks defeat the Mongols at the Battle of Ain Jalut in Palestine, marking their first decisive defeat and the point of maximum expansion of the Mongol Empire.

1650 - Third English Civil War: Battle of Dunbar (1650)

1651 - Third English Civil War: Battle of Worcester - Charles II of England is defeated in the last main battle of the war.

1666 - The Royal Exchange burnt down in the Great Fire of London

1777 - Cooch's Bridge - Skirmish of American Revolutionary war in New Castle County, Delaware where the Flag of the United States was flown in battle for the first time.

1783 - American Revolutionary War: The war ends with the signing of the Treaty of Paris by the United States and the Kingdom of Great Britain. America is officially free from Britain

1798 - Weeklong battle of St. George's Caye begun between Spanish and British off the coast of Belize.

1803 - English chemist-physicist John Dalton started using symbols to represent the atoms of different elements.

1838 - Dressed in a sailor's uniform and carrying identification papers provided by a Free Black seaman, future abolitionist Frederick Douglass boards a train in Maryland on his way to freedom from slavery.

1855 - Indian Wars: In Nebraska, 700 soldiers under American General William S. Harney avenge the Grattan Massacre by attacking a Sioux village, killing 100 men, women, and children.

1861 - American Civil War: Confederate General Leonidas Polk invades neutral Kentucky, prompting the state legislature to ask for Union assistance.

1870 - Franco-Prussian War: the Siege of Metz begins, which will result in a decisive Prussian victory on October 23.

1874 - The congress of the state of México elevates Naucalpan to the category of Villa, with the title of "Villa de Juárez".

1878 - Over 640 die when the crowded pleasure boat Princess Alice collides with the Bywell Castle in the River Thames.

1914 - William, Prince of Albania leaves the country after just six months due to opposition to his rule.

1929 - Dow Jones Industrial Average reached all time high at the time (381.17), which was shortly followed by the Crash of 1929.

1933 - Yevgeniy Abalakov reaches the highest point of the Soviet Union - Communism Peak (7495 m).

1935 - Sir Malcolm Campbell reaches 304.331 miles per hour on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, becoming the first person to drive an automobile over 300 mph

1939 - World War II begins when France, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia declare war on Germany after the invasion of Poland, starting the Allies.

1942 - World War II: Uprising of the Jewish ghetto in Lakhva occurs.

1943 - World War II: Mainland Italy is invaded by Allied forces for the first time in the war.

1944 - Holocaust: Diarist Anne Frank and her family are placed on the last transport train from Westerbork to Auschwitz, arriving three days later.

1950 - "Nino" Farina becomes the first Formula One Drivers' champion after winning the 1950 Italian Grand Prix.

1951 - The first long-running American television soap opera, Search for Tomorrow, airs its first episode on the CBS network.

1954 - The People's Liberation Army begin shelling the ROC-controlled islands of Quemoy.
1954 - The German U-Boat U-505 began its move from a specially constructed dock to its final site at Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry.

1967 - Dagen H in Sweden: traffic changes from driving on the left to driving on the right overnight

1971 - Qatar becomes an independent state

1976 - Viking program: The Viking 2 spacecraft lands at Utopia Planitia on Mars.

1994 - Sino-Soviet Split: Russia and the People's Republic of China agree to de-target their nuclear weapons against each other.

1995 - eBay founded.

1997 - A Vietnam Airlines Tupolev TU-134 crashes on approach into Phnom Penh airport, killing 64.

2004 - The Beslan school massacre ends in the deaths of approximately 344 people, mostly teachers and children.


Notable Births:

1905 - Carl David Anderson, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1991)
1942 - Al Jardine, American musician (the Beach Boys)
1947 - Eric Bell, Irish guitarist (Thin Lizzy)
1955 - Steve Jones, English musician (Sex Pistols)
1965 - Charlie Sheen, American actor
1969 - Marianna Komlos, fitness model, professional wrestler, and valet (d. 2004)
1970 - Jeremy Glick, American United Airlines Flight 93 passenger (d. 2001)
1977 - Nate Robertson, American baseball player


Notable Deaths:

1658 - Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England (b. 1599)
1970 - Vince Lombardi, American football coach (b. 1913)
1991 - Frank Capra, American film director (b. 1897)
2005 - William Rehnquist, Chief Justice of the United States (b. 1924)


I know that I've slacked off for a few days. I had a death in the family (a cousin's husband) so I was a little preoccupied with some stuff. Tomorrow should be the last entry on the Doctrines of Grace. Until then...

The Doctrines of Grace - Unconditional Election

Definition of Unconditional Election from the Westminster Confession of Faith

3.5 Those of mankind that are predestinated unto life, God, before the foundation of the world was laid, according to His eternal and immutable purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of His will, hath chosen in Christ unto everlasting glory, out of His mere free grace and love, without any foresight of faith or good works, or perseverance in either of them, or any other thing in the creature, as conditions, or causes moving Him thereunto; and all to the praise of His glorious grace.
3.6 As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so hath He, by the eternal and most free purpose of His will, foreordained all the means thereunto. Wherefore, they who are elected being fallen in Adam, are redeemed by Christ; are effectually called unto faith in Christ by His Spirit working in due season; are justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept by His power, through faith, unto salvation. Neither are any other redeemed by Christ, effectually called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and saved, but the elect only.


The Classic Arminian Position (Election Based on Foreknowledge)

“[God purposes] to save particular persons and to damn others, which decree rests upon the foreknowledge of God, by which he has known from eternity which persons should believe according to such an administration of the means serving to repentance and faith through his preceding grace and which should persevere through subsequent grace, and also who should not believe and persevere.” (Quoted in Carl Bangs, Arminius: A Study in the Dutch Reformation, 1971, p. 352).


The Contemporary Arminian Emphasis (Election Corporate, Not Individual):

“The point is that the election of the church is a corporate rather than an individual thing. It is not that individuals are in the church because they are elect, it is rather that they are elect because they are in the church which is the body of the elect One.” (R. T. Forster and V. P. Marston, God’s Strategy in Human History , 1973, p. 136).

“...election is a corporate category and not oriented to the choice of individuals for salvation. . . . [Election has reference to] a class of people rather than specific individuals.” (Clark Pinnock, The Grace of God and the Will of Man: A Case for Arminianism, 1990, p. 20)

The modern Arminian view on election is that the election of the church is a corporate, rather than an individual, thing. It is not that individuals are in the church because they are elect; it is rather that they are elect because they are in the church, which is the body of the elect one. If you ask an Arminian “how did you get in the church?” the answer is that they got themselves into church. Yes there is an assisting grace, but it can be resisted, and the reason they are ultimately in the church is because by faith, by a self standing, self determining, decisive choice they got themselves into the church. They conquered, in the end, their deadness in sin, with God’s assistance up to a point, but they did the decisive conquering. So then election is not of individuals, election is of the church, and it was unspecified so God did not elect particular individuals, He elected a mass and then He left it to the people to decide who would get into that mass. Election is a corporate category. It is not oriented to the choice of individuals for salvation. Election speaks of a class of people rather than specific individuals.

A Calvinist believes that the Bible teaches that individuals are chosen before the foundation of the world and they are chosen freely apart from any achievement or conditions on their part at all, even foreseen faith.

The Arminian either emphasizes that election is based on foreseen faith, or is corporate rather than individual so neither has to reckon with the fact that it’s unconditional for individuals.


Is Election Not Individual Because It Is “in Him”?

Ephesians 1:3-6
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.

The phrase Arminians land on is “He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world”. Many people think that He chose Christ as the elect One, and He did not choose particular individuals who would be in Christ. So if you are in Christ you are now elect, but He didn’t choose you to be in Christ. He chose Christ and you were the decisive actor in getting into Christ. The Calvinist would say those words could carry that meaning, but they also could not. It may mean that He chose us in the very natural meaning of this word “select”. No doubt God contemplates the Savior when thinking about those He will save. He saves by Jesus, He saves in Jesus, He saves in relation to Jesus. He chose (put the name of one who is born again here) in relation to Jesus. Same thing with predestination. He predestined us to adoption through Jesus. It’s through Jesus that He is bringing me to Himself.


Does “All Things” Include Our Faith?

Ephesians 1:11
In [Christ] also we have been chosen, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will.


Were We Dead and Unable to Believe So That Life and Faith Had to Be Given to Us?

Ephesians 2:4-9
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.

What kind of election is this? It’s grace God made us alive together with Christ. He did it. If he did it for me but not others, isn’t election individual. His grace brought me from deadness to alive. If grace raised me from the dead and enabled me to believe, God did not wait in His electing decrees to see whether I would believe on my own and thus elect me. He chose those for whom he would do this gracious work, which means He chose before they did it, which means He chose unconditionally. It is a gift. All of that saving work is a gift. If this is true then the Arminian view that election is based on our work of faith being foreknown falls to the ground, because God is providing the faith, not waiting to see if it comes to pass on the basis of which He would elect. If He provides the faith then He is choosing people before they have faith, which means He’s choosing them before they do anything to merit it or show themselves distinctive from any other believer and thus bring them to Himself.


Is Election Individual and Are We in Christ Because of God?

1 Corinthians 1:26-30
For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption.


Is Election Individual?

James 2:5
Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?


Is Election the Effect or the Cause of Obtaining Salvation, That Is, of Foreknown Faith?

Romans 11:1-8
Do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? “Lord, THEY HAVE KILLED YOUR PROPHETS, THEY HAVE TORN DOWN YOUR ALTARS, AND I ALONE AM LEFT, AND THEY ARE SEEKING MY LIFE.” But what is the divine response to him? “I HAVE KEPT for Myself SEVEN THOUSAND MEN WHO HAVE NOT BOWED THE KNEE TO BAAL.” In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God's gracious choice. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace. What then? What Israel is seeking, it has not obtained, but those who were chosen obtained it, and the rest were hardened; just as it is written, “GOD GAVE THEM A SPIRIT OF STUPOR, EYES TO SEE NOT AND EARS TO HEAR NOT, DOWN TO THIS VERY DAY.”


Who Obtained What Israel Was Seeking?

Romans 9:30-33
What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith; but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, just as it is written, "BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE, AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."


Is Election Based on Foreknown Faith or Does Faith Happen Because of Election?

Acts 13:48
When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.


Do We Belong to God Because We Come to Jesus, or Do We Come to Jesus Because We Belong to God?

John 17:6-9
I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. . . . I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours.

John 6:37-39
All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day.


Are We Jesus’ Sheep Because We Believe, or Do We Believe Because We Are His Sheep?

John 10:24-27
The Jews then gathered around Him, and were saying to Him, “How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe; the works that I do in My Father's name, these testify of Me. But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”


Is Evangelism Making Sheep or Gathering Sheep?

John 10:16
I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd.


Is World Missions Begetting Children of God or Gathering Children of God?

John 11:50-52
[Caiaphas said,] “it is expedient for you that one man die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish.” Now he did not say this on his own initiative, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.

Acts 18:9-10
And the Lord said to Paul in the night by a vision, “Do not be afraid any longer, but go on speaking and do not be silent; for I am with you, and no man will attack you in order to harm you, for I have many people in this city.”


Did God Choose Us Because He Knows We Will Come, or Do We Come Because He Chose to Give Us the Will to Come?

John 6:44, 65
“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. . . .” And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”

Acts 16:14
A woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshiper of God, was listening; and the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.


Is Election Based on Foreknown Faith or Is Faith the Effect of Election?

Romans 8:28-33
And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies.


Is Election Individual and Unconditional and Dealing with Eternal Destiny?

Romans 9:1-23
I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen. But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; nor are they all children because they are Abraham's descendants, but: “THROUGH ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS WILL BE NAMED.” That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants. For this is the word of promise: “AT THIS TIME I WILL COME, AND SARAH SHALL HAVE A SON.” And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac; for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, it was said to her, “THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER.” Just as it is written, “JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED.” What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! For He says to Moses, “I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.” So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE I RAISED YOU UP, TO DEMONSTRATE MY POWER IN YOU, AND THAT MY NAME MIGHT BE PROCLAIMED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE EARTH.” So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires. You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?” On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory.


Some Texts that May Seem Problematic for Unconditional Election

1 Timothy 2:1-4
First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

I. Howard Marshall, who is not a Calvinist and who writes on this text in “Universal Grace and Atonement in the Pastoral Epistles,” The Grace of God, the Will of Man: A Case for Arminianism, (p. 56), concedes that there are two levels of willing implied in this text: To avoid all misconceptions it should be made clear at the outset that the fact that God wishes or wills that all people should be saved does not necessarily imply that all will respond to the gospel and be saved. We must certainly distinguish between what God would like to see happen and what he actually does will to happen, and both of these things can be spoken of as God’s will. The question at issue is not whether all will be saved but whether God has made provision in Christ for the salvation of all, provided that they believe, and without limiting the potential scope of the death of Christ merely to those whom God knows will believe. But nowhere in the entire essay does Marshall mention the one text in the Pastoral Epistles that points most clearly to these two wills and what they are, namely, 2 Timothy 2:24-26 and 2 Peter 3:8-10.


2 Timothy 2:24-26
The Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.

Marshall poses the question whether any text in the Pastorals would lead us to believe that “faith and repentance are the gifts of God, who gives them only to the previously chosen group of the elect” (p. 66). He concludes that there is not, even though the text that comes closest to saying this very thing is passed over.


2 Peter 3:8-10
But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.

Ezekiel 18:23
“Do I have any pleasure in the death of the wicked,” declares the Lord GOD, “rather than that he should turn from his ways and live?

Lamentations 3:31-33 (An example of God willing in one sense what he does not will in another sense) For the Lord will not reject forever, For if He causes grief, Then He will have compassion, According to His abundant lovingkindness. For He does not afflict willingly, Or grieve the sons of men.

What Happened Whensday: August 27, 2008

This is the 239th day of the year (240th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 126 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events:

479 BC - Greco-Persian Wars: Persian forces led by Mardonius are routed by Pausanias, the Spartan commander of the Greek army in the Battle of Plataea. Along the with the Greek victory on the same day in the Battle of Mycale, the Persian invasion of Greece ended.

410 - Visigothic sack of Rome ends after three days.

663 - Remnants of the Korean Baekje Kingdom and their Yamato Japanese allies engage the combined naval forces of the Tang Chinese and Silla Koreans on the Geum River in Korea; the outcome is a significant Tang-Silla victory, while the Japanese would not attempt another invasion of Korea until the Japanese invasions of Korea of the late 16th century.

1232 - The Formulary of Adjudications is promulgated by Regent Hōjō Yasutoki. (Traditional Japanese date: August 10, 1232)

1689 - The Treaty of Nerchinsk is signed by Russia and the Qing empire.

1776 - Battle of Long Island, in present day Brooklyn, New York, British forces under General William Howe defeat Americans under General George Washington.

1789 - The French National Assembly adopts the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, proclaiming that "men are born and remain free and equal in rights."

1793 - French counter-revolution, port of Toulon revolts and admits the British fleet, which lands troops and seizes the port leading to Siege of Toulon.

1798 - United Irishmen and French forces clash with the British army in the Battle of Castlebar, part of the Irish Rebellion of 1798.

1813 - French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte defeats a larger force of Austrians, Russians and Prussians at the Battle of Dresden.

1828 - The Russians defeat the Turks at the Battle of Akhalzic.

1828 - Uruguay is formally proclaimed independent at preliminary peace talks brokered by Britain between Brazil and Argentina during their war.

1859 - Petroleum discovered in Titusville, Pennsylvania. World's first successful oil well.

1861 - Civil War: Union (Northern) forces attack Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.

1896 - Anglo-Zanzibar War: the shortest war in world history (09:00 to 09:45) between the United Kingdom and Zanzibar.

1916 - World War I: Romania declares war against Austria-Hungary, entering World War I as one of the Allied nations. It is soon occupied by German and Bulgarian forces.

1921 - The British install the son of Sharif Hussein bin Ali (leader of the Arab Revolt of 1916 against the Ottoman Empire) as King Faisal I of Iraq.

1927 - American aviators Billy Brock and Ed Schlee fly the Pride of Detroit over London on the way to completing the first-ever flight around the world.

1928 - Kellogg-Briand Pact, outlawing war, signed by sixty nations.

1939 - First flight of the Heinkel He 178, the first modern jet aircraft.

1943 - World War II: Japanese forces evacuate New Georgia Island in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II.

1952 - Reparation negotiations between West Germany and Israel end in Luxembourg; West Germany to pay 3 billion Deutschmark.

1957 - The Constitution of Malaysia came into force.

1962 - Mariner 2 unmanned space mission launched to Venus by America's NASA.

1965 - Music: 1965 - Elvis Presley played host to the Beatles at his home in Bel-Air, CA.

1969 - Israeli commando force penetrates deep into Egyptian territory to stage mortar attack on regional Egyptian Army headquarters in the Nile Valley of Upper Egypt.

1971 - A coup attempt fails in the African nation of Chad. The Chadian government accuses Egypt of playing a role in the attempt and breaks off diplomatic relations.

1975 - The Governor of Portuguese Timor abandons its capital, Dili, and flees to Atauro Island, leaving control to a rebel group.

1979 - An IRA bomb kills British World War II admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten and 3 others while boating on holiday in Sligo, Republic of Ireland. Another bomb near Warrenpoint, Northern Ireland kills 18 British soldiers.

1982 Turkish military diplomat Colonel Atilla Altikat is shot and killed in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada's capital. Justice Commandos Against Armenian Genocide claim responsibility, saying they were avenging the massacre of 1.5 million Armenians in the 1915 Armenian Genocide.

1985 - The Nigerian government is peacefully overthrown by Army Chief of Staff Major General Ibrahim Babangida.

1990 - Pro Wrestling: Kerry Von Erich defeated Curt Hennig for the WWE Intercontinental title at WWE Summerslam; At the same event, The Hart Foundation defeated Demolition for the WWE Tag Team title.

1991 - The European Community recognizes the independence of the Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

1991 - Moldova declares independence from the USSR.

1993 - The Rainbow Bridge, connecting Tokyo's Shibaura and the island of Odaiba, is completed.

1995 - Pro Wrestling: Bertha Faye defeated Alundra Blaze for the WWE Women's title at WWE Summerslam.

2000 - Ostankino Tower in Moscow catches fire, three people are killed.
2000 - Pro Wrestling: Chyna defeated Val Venis by pinning Trish Stratus in a tag match for the WWE Intercontinental title at WWE Summerslam; At the same event, Steve Blackman defeated Shane McMahon for the WWE Hardcore title.

2003 - Mars makes its closest approach to Earth in nearly 60,000 years, passing approximately 34,646,416 miles (55,758,006 kilometers) from Earth.

2006 - Comair Flight 5191 crashed en route from Blue Grass Airport in Lexington, Kentucky, to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia. Forty-nine of the 50 people aboard the flight were confirmed dead in the hours following the crash


Notable Births:

1910 - Mother Teresa, Roman Catholic nun, Nobel laureate (d. 1997)
1947 - Barbara Bach, American actress
1952 - Paul "Pee-Wee Herman" Reubens, American actor
1953 - Alex Lifeson, Canadian guitarist (Rush)
1961 - Yolanda Adams, American gospel singer
1962 - Adam Oates, Canadian ice hockey player
1963 - Downtown Julie Brown, Welsh TV personality and former MTV VJ
1978 - Mase, American rapper


Notable Deaths:

827 - Pope Eugene II
1590 - Pope Sixtus V (b. 1521)
1964 - Gracie Allen, American actress and comedienne (b. 1895)
1967 - Brian Epstein, English manager of The Beatles (b. 1934)
1990 - Stevie Ray Vaughan, American guitarist (b. 1954)
2006 - Maria Capovilla, oldest woman alive from 2004-2006 (b. 1889)

The Doctrines of Grace - Limited/Unlimited Atonement

Before we discuss the topic, let's remember what we are being atoned from. All sin, in all of it’s dramatic diversity, is, in it’s acted out form, always a drama of an inward horror, namely the exchange of the glory of God for other things. All of the suffering in the world, and all of the futility in the world, and all of the death in the world is also a drama of an inward horror. If you think that there are physical, moral, and spiritual horrors in the world, you are right, and we have not seen the half of it where we live. In some countries babies are hacked with machetes. It would be hard to completely love the doctrine of the atonement unless we begin to see how rotten, ugly, bankrupt, rebellious, and at enmity against God so that there is no hope for us whatsoever, and that we are deserving of the worst possible hackings to death. Until we feel that, the death of Jesus (which was the worst of all tortures) will simply be another thought, another doctrine.


Definition of Atonement
The atonement is the work of God in Christ, by his obedience and death, by which he canceled the debt of our sin, appeased his holy wrath against us, and won for us all the benefits of salvation.

Everything good that comes into the life of a sinner was bought at Calvary, from the rising of the sun, to marriage, to children, to health, to a job, to the forgiveness of sin, and to everlasting life. If we got our due we would die the moment we were conceived, because in Adam all sin/sinned, and we would perish. Even though we are discussing “limited atonement” it’s effects are felt by all.


Why Is an Atonement Needed for God to Save Sinners?

Romans 3:23-26
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance (patience) of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:21
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

1 Peter 3:18
For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God.

Romans 5:9-10
Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

Romans 8:32
He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?


God had Jesus crucified to make sure justice was carried out on someone because of sin, which had previously gone unpunished. When Jesus was crucified it was as if God considered Christ to be sin made flesh instead of God made flesh.


Who Limits the Atonement?
Both Calvinists and Arminians.

Arminians limit the effectiveness of the atonement by denying that it purchased the promises of the New Covenant for irresistible grace. Calvinists affirm this purchase of the promises of the New Covenant for irresistible grace, and therefore limit the full blessings of the atonement to a certain group of people (those God irresistibly brings to faith).

Salvation and the faith that saves are gifts of God’s grace, promised by the new covenant to God’s people. Repentance is another one of these gifts. Arminians deny that the atonement purchased the promises of the new covenant in that they don’t believe that God purchased the gift of faith or the gift of repentance, but that you must perform the gift of faith in order to get in the benefit of the atonement, because the atonement is for everybody in the same way. Calvinists believe faith and repentance were purchased by the atonement, as well as everything else.


What Are Other Names for “Limited Atonement”?

Definite Atonement
Meaning that it is designed for definite individuals who are effectively saved by it.


Particular Redemption
Meaning that God has particular people in mind, or in view, in the design of the atonement to purchase all the blessings of salvation for his people.


What Is Another Name for “Unlimited Atonement”?

Universal Redemption
Meaning that God’s design in the atonement is the same for all individual humans. It creates opportunity for all humans to receive salvation, and once we believe and repent then it is effective for us.


Do Calvinists Water Down John 3:16?
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

No, because John 3:16 affirms that God loved the world so that anyone who believes will be saved by the death of his Son. Both Calvinists and Arminians affirm this: All who believe will be saved by the atonement of Jesus.


So what’s the Dispute?
Calvinists believe that the death of Christ accomplished or purchased something more than Arminians believe it did, namely, the effectual grace to believe and come to Christ. All the irresistible grace (or effectual calling) that we saw in the last post, Calvinists believe, was purchased by the death of Christ.

For example:
Ephesians 2:8-9
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.

2 Timothy 2:24-25
The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth.

Acts 16:14
A woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshiper of God, was listening; and the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.

John 6:65
For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.


If Calvinists Believe the Atonement Purchased More Than Arminians Believe it Did, Why is it Called Limited Atonement?

It’s not a good label. But the “limitation” is in the conscious design or intention of the atonement by God. Calvinists believe that God really means to accomplish, through the atonement, the conversion of a definite (limited) group of people, not just hold out the opportunity to all people to believe. Whereas the Arminian says the atonement simply holds out the opportunity for all. Calvinists agree that there is opportunity for all, and the atonement was sufficient for all, and that all or any who believe will be forgiven and saved, but also believe that the atonement purchased the faith and repentance of those God chose.


Why Do Calvinists Believe That The Atonement Purchases Irresistible Grace?

Mainly because the New Covenant promises this grace to God’s people and the blood of Jesus purchased this covenant.

Luke 22:20
And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.”

When Jesus shed His blood He bought and secured the New Covenant for whoever the New Covenant is for.

Matthew 26:28
This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.

1 Corinthians 11:25
In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”

Jeremiah 31:31-33
“Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”

Jeremiah 32:38-40
They shall be My people, and I will be their God; and I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me always, for their own good and for the good of their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will put the fear of Me in their hearts so that they will not turn away from Me.

Ezekiel 11:19
And I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them. And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh.

Ezekiel 36:26-27
Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.


How Does the Book of Hebrews Develop This?

Hebrews 13:20-21
Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Hebrews 10:14-18
For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying, “THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THEM AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS UPON THEIR HEART, AND ON THEIR MIND I WILL WRITE THEM,” He then says, “AND THEIR SINS AND THEIR LAWLESS DEEDS I WILL REMEMBER NO MORE.” Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.

Hebrews 2:9-18
But we do see [Jesus] who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, “I WILL PROCLAIM YOUR NAME TO MY BRETHREN, IN THE MIDST OF THE CONGREGATION I WILL SING YOUR PRAISE.” And again, “I WILL PUT MY TRUST IN HIM.” And again, “BEHOLD, I AND THE CHILDREN WHOM GOD HAS GIVEN ME.” Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. For assuredly He does not give help to angels, but He gives help to the seed of Abraham. Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.

Hebrews 9:27-28
And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment, so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.


A Word from John Owen on the New and Old Covenants
[Note: John Owen (1616 - August 24, 1683) was an English church leader and theologian.]

With regard to Jeremiah 31:31-32 and Hebrews 8:9-11, John Owen says, “Wherein, first the condition of the covenant is not said to be required, but it is absolutely promised: ‘I will put my fear in their hearts.’ And this is the main difference between the old covenant of works and the new one of grace, that in that the Lord did only require the fulfilling of the condition prescribed, but in this he promises to effect it in them himself with whom the covenant is made. This then is one main difference of these two covenants – that the Lord did in the old only require the condition; now, in the new, he will also effect it in all the federates, to whom this covenant is extended” (The Death of Death, vol. 10, pp. 236-237).


Texts Often Used to Deny Limited Atonement

1 Timothy 2:6
Christ gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time.

1 John 2:1-2
My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.

Hebrews 2:9
But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.

2 Corinthians 5:19
God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

John 1:29
The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

2 Peter 2:1
But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves (See 1 Corinthians 8:11; Romans 14:14:15).


Texts that Seem to Designate the Atonement for a Limited Group

Romans 5:8
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

1 Thessalonians 5:10
Christ died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we will live together with Him.

John 10:11, 14-15
I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep . . . I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.

Ephesians 5:25
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her.

Acts 20:28
Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.

John 11:51-52
Being high priest that year, [Caiaphas] prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.

Hebrews 10:14
For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.


Arminians take all the passages which say the death of Christ is “for us” (Romans 5:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:10) or for “his own sheep” (John 10:11, 15) or for “the church” (Ephesians 5:25; Acts 20:28) or for “the children of God” (John 11:52) or for “those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14) and say that the meaning is that God designs and intends the atonement for all people in the same way, but that God applies it as effective and saving only for those who believe and become part of “us” and “the sheep” and “the church” and “the children of God.” In this view, then, the sentence, “Christ died for you,” means: Christ died for all sinners, so that if you will repent and believe in Christ, then the death of Jesus will become effective in your case and will take away your sins.

Now, as far as it goes, this seems to me to be acceptable teaching. But then Arminians deny something that I think the Bible teaches. They deny that the texts about Christ’s dying for “us” or “his sheep” or his “church” or “the children of God” were intended by God to obtain something more for his people than the benefits they get after they believe. They deny, specifically, that the death of Christ was not only intended by God to obtain benefits for people after they believe (which is true), but even more, Christ’s death was intended by God to obtain the very willingness to believe. In other words, the divine grace that it takes too overcome our hardness of heart and become a believer was also obtained by the blood of Jesus. There is no dispute that Christ died to obtain great saving benefits for all who believe. Moreover, there is no dispute that Christ died so that we might say to all persons everywhere without exception: “God gave his only begotten Son to die for sin so that if you believe on him you may have eternal life.” The dispute is whether God intended for the death of Christ to obtain more than these two things: 1) saving benefits after faith, and 2) a bona fide invitation that can be made to any person to believe on Christ for salvation. Specifically, did God intend for the death of Christ to obtain the free gift of faith (Ephesians 2:8) and repentance (2 Timothy 2:25)? Did the blood of Jesus obtain both the benefits after faith, and the benefit of faith itself? Does the historic Arminian interpretation of any of the “universal” texts on the atonement necessarily contradict this “more” that I am affirming about God’s intention for the death of Christ? (Texts like: 1 Timothy 2:6; 1 John 2:1-2; Hebrews 2:9; 2 Corinthians 5:19; John 1:29; 2 Peter 2:1.) I don’t think so. Arminians historically are just as eager as Calvinists to avoid saying that these texts teach “universal salvation.” So they do not teach that the death of Christ “for all” saves all. Rather, they say, in the words of Millard Erickson, “God intended the atonement to make salvation possible for all persons. Christ died for all persons, but this atoning death becomes effective only when accepted by the individual.” Erickson then says, “This is the view of all Arminians” (Christian Theology, p. 829, emphasis added). Arminians do not say that in the death of Christ God intends to effectively save all for whom Christ died. They only say that God intends to make possible the salvation of all for whom Christ died. But this interpretation of these “universal” texts does not contradict the Calvinist assertion that God does intend to obtain the grace of faith and repentance for a definite group by the death of Christ. Arminians may deny this assertion, but they cannot deny it on the basis of their interpretation of the “universal” texts of the atonement. That interpretation simply affirms that all may have salvation if they believe. Calvinists do not dispute that. They only go beyond it. Here’s the rub: if he did this “more,” he didn’t do it for everyone. So at this level the atonement becomes “limited.” And this is what Arminians stumble over: is there anything that God would do to get some unbelievers saved that he would not do for all? This “limitation” implies a choice on God’s part to save some and not all. This leads to unconditional election, which we will take up in the next post on Thursday.

Texts Supporting the Assertion That the Atonement Obtained the Grace of Faith The Blood of the New Covenant

Luke 22:20
And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.”

Ezekiel 36:26-27
Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.


The Ingathering of the Children of God

1 John 2:2
He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.

John 11:50-52
“It is expedient for you that one man die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish." Now [Caiaphas] did not say this on his own initiative, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.

John 10:11
I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep . . . I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.

Revelation 5:9
And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.”


By His Wounds You Were Returned to Your Shepherd

1 Peter 2:24-25
He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.


Texts Showing the Design of the Atonement for God’s Chosen Ones:

The Death of Christ for the Elect Is the Ground of Their Assurance

Romans 8:29-33
For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Who will bring a charge against God's elect?


He Tasted Death for All the Children God Gave to Him

Hebrews 2:9-18
But we do see [Jesus] who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, “I WILL PROCLAIM YOUR NAME TO MY BRETHREN, IN THE MIDST OF THE CONGREGATION I WILL SING YOUR PRAISE.” And again, “I WILL PUT MY TRUST IN HIM.” And again, “BEHOLD, I AND THE CHILDREN WHOM GOD HAS GIVEN ME.” Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. For assuredly He does not give help to angels, but He gives help to the seed of Abraham. Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.