The Unrighteous Who Become Righteous

[Michael37]

Rom 5:19  For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

How many were made sinners?

 

Rom 3:10-11  As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:  (11)  There is none that understands, there is none that seeks after God.

Rom 3:21-26  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;  (22)  Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:  (23)  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;  (24)  Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:  (25)  Whom God has set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;  (26)  To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believes in Jesus.

Rom 5:12  Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
 

So how many shall be made righteous and if not all, why not all?

[johnthebaptist]

21 hours ago, Michael37 said:

Rom 5:19  For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

How many were made sinners?

 

Rom 3:10-11  As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:  (11)  There is none that understands, there is none that seeks after God.

Rom 3:21-26  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;  (22)  Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:  (23)  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;  (24)  Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:  (25)  Whom God has set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;  (26)  To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believes in Jesus.

Rom 5:12  Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
 

So how many shall be made righteous and if not all, why not all?

[17] "Yet your people say, `The way of the Lord is not just'; when it is their own way that is not just.
[18] When the righteous turns from his righteousness, and commits iniquity, he shall die for it.
[19] And when the wicked turns from his wickedness, and does what is lawful and right, he shall live by it.
[20] Yet you say, `The way of the Lord is not just.' O house of Israel, I will judge each of you according to his ways." Ezekiel 33:17-20 RSV

 

[Riverwalker]

22 hours ago, Michael37 said:

So how many shall be made righteous and if not all, why not all?

And many as choose to be saved and made righteous

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 

Romans 10:  9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Romans 10:13 For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

[Jedi4Yahweh]

Jesus never taught universal salvation for all.  I wish that were the case but contradicts what Jesus taught.   We know from scriptures only a few will be saved and many will parish taught by Messiah himself.

• "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide [is] the gate and broad [is] the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. "Because narrow [is] the gate and difficult [is] the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. - Mat 7:13-14 NKJV
• "Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. "When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open for us,' and He will answer and say to you, 'I do not know you, where you are from,' "then you will begin to say, 'We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.' "But He will say, 'I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.' "There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. - Luk 13:24-28 NKJV
• For the time [has come] for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if [it begins] with us first, what will [be] the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? Now "If the righteous one is scarcely saved, Where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?" - 1Pe 4:17-18 NKJV 
• "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. "Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!' - Mat 7:21-23 NKJV

Edited March 10, 2021 by Jedi4Yahweh

[Marathoner]

I'm aware of arguments in favor of the notion of universal salvation and know of some who hold tightly to it. These are earnest brethren so I'm gentle in pointing out this error of antiquity (more about that in moment), referring to the testimony of Jesus Christ regarding the last resurrection of the dead. We know there will be some whose names are not written in the Lamb's book of life and so these will be cast into the lake of fire, a definitive refutation of the redemption of all men. 

Ah, but then there are some who maintain that their estate is not permanent which is to say, not everlasting. I've been astonished by this and wonder where such a doctrine is derived. My knowledge of early Christian history centers around our brethren during that period of time when the last of the apostles, John, made disciples of elders such as Polycarp of Smyrna. The concept of universal salvation was absent during this time and made an appearance centuries later in the writings of Origen of Alexandria. This is why I refer to universal salvation as an "error of antiquity." 

That we would love to see every man and woman saved goes without saying, but this desire of the heart doesn't reflect the truth.    

[Michael37]

7 hours ago, Riverwalker said:

And many as choose to be saved and made righteous

 

6 hours ago, Marathoner said:

We know there will be some whose names are not written in the Lamb's book of life and so these will be cast into the lake of fire, a definitive refutation of the redemption of all men. 

God's choice and man's choice intersect at the crucifixion of Christ. No doubt the activity of the Holy Spirit is the causation of the sinner's choice to believe in Christ as Lord and Saviour, and God's foreknowledge of this choice is the causation of their being ordained to eternal life. 

Quote From Believer's Bible Commentary

Act 13:48  And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.

Divine election and human responsibility are both scriptural truths, and neither should be emphasized at the expense of the other. While there seems to be a conflict between the two, this conflict exists only in the human mind, and not in the mind of God.

[Riverwalker]

38 minutes ago, Michael37 said:

 

God's choice and man's choice intersect at the crucifixion of Christ. No doubt the activity of the Holy Spirit is the causation of the sinner's choice to believe in Christ as Lord and Saviour, and God's foreknowledge of this choice is the causation of their being ordained to eternal life. 

Quote From Believer's Bible Commentary

Act 13:48  And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.

Divine election and human responsibility are both scriptural truths, and neither should be emphasized at the expense of the other. While there seems to be a conflict between the two, this conflict exists only in the human mind, and not in the mind of God.

God calls...we answer. Our Choice to be Christian is completely voluntary. And completely dependent on us taking the action to believe. Yes God chooses the gift, God wraps the gift and God gives the gift....but unless we willingly receive the gift, it goes unfulfilled

 

Edited March 11, 2021 by Riverwalker

[Michael37]

35 minutes ago, Riverwalker said:

God calls...we answer. Our Choice to be Christian is completely voluntary. And completely dependent on us taking the action to believe. Yes God chooses the gift, God wraps the gift and God gives the gift....but unless we willingly receive the gift, it goes unfulfilled

 

Very well put, @Riverwalker

[Marathoner]

11 hours ago, Michael37 said:

Divine election and human responsibility are both scriptural truths, and neither should be emphasized at the expense of the other. While there seems to be a conflict between the two, this conflict exists only in the human mind, and not in the mind of God.

Agreed, brother. I have touched upon this before in the illustration of the disciples and the multitude from the Gospels. The Lord chose the twelve (John 6:70) --- even Judas who betrayed Him --- and there were many who believed Christ whom I refer to as the multitude.

Just as God's ways are not our ways and His thoughts are higher than our own, we are not sufficient unto salvation ourselves. Thus in the fullness of time the grace of God appeared, born of a woman under the Law, our Father's mercy revealed in the person of His beloved Son. If it weren't needful for our Father to save us from our estate then why would He send His only begotten Son, perfect without spot or blemish, to be numbered among transgressors (us)? 

This isn't a matter of free will for we were in bondage to sin, servants of unrighteousness lost in darkness. No man knows as he ought to, for do we see all things clearly? Do we possess all knowledge? The book of Job (and others like the Proverbs) addresses the limits of man and how nothing is impossible to the Almighty. God in His mercy remembers that our frame is dust and so the Good News (Gospel) is proclaimed to all men: God with us, Emmanuel, has come! 

The Spirit of the Lord, sent into the world by the Son of the living God, reasons with captives lost in their bondage to unrighteousness, convicting all of their ungodly deeds and opposition to the Almighty. As many as are ordained to eternal life believe, something which is not inimical to the illumination of our hearts and souls by the Spirit of God. As the scriptures testify, no one comes to Christ unless the Father draws him. Hence all who belong to the Lamb are chosen by Him in this way. 

Is this such a hard thing? There are some whom, like the disciples and the prophets of old, are elected by God according to His purpose and will. These He foreknew and predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, to walk in those works which God ordained for them before the foundation of the world.    

[Marathoner]

No man can boast, saying "I chose God!" This is the custom of some who look down upon their unbelieving neighbor and in doing so, become transgressors themselves. Nor can any man boast "The Lord chose me!", for in truth the Lord has chosen a multitude without number in space and time. The one who boasts in himself is a transgressor for all glory, honor, power, and majesty belongs to Almighty God. 

We were all equally yoked to darkness, my friends. What does the scripture say?

Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, we also are in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He first loved us. (1 John 4:15-19 NASB)

We did not choose Him, He chose us. He loved us first.  

Edited March 11, 2021 by Marathoner