We are products of one mans sin. That sin of disobedience landed us into this gigantic mess known as total depravity, not by our choice, but "by reason of Him who made it so".
Our Father takes full responsibility for the mess and the purpose for the mess.
Resurrection of the good, the bad & the ugly is His and His alone!
"The whole of created life shall be delivered.."
Not total depravity, I think.
Gen 3:22 NASB 22 Then the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"--
Rom 2:14-16 NASB 14 For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves, 15 in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them, 16 on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men through Christ Jesus.
How can man be totally depraved if he has the knowledge of good, and God has written His law on even the hearts of the unbelievers?
Deu 30:1, 6, 11-15, 19 NASB 1 "So it shall be when all of these things have come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you call [them] to mind in all nations where the LORD your God has banished you, ... 6 "Moreover the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live. ... 11 "For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach. 12 "It is not in heaven, that you should say, 'Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?' 13 "Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, 'Who will cross the sea for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?' 14 "But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it. 15 "See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity; ... 19 "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants,
Clearly, life & death, blessing and cursing is a choice that God sets before man. This choice is not made by God in heaven, and it says it is not too difficult for man to make the choice. The context here is circumcision of the heart. Circumcision is the old Testament's foreshadow for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
Rom 8:15-17 NASB 15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!" 16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with [Him] so that we may also be glorified with [Him.]
This passage in Romans 8 agrees with Deuteronomy 30:19. Deu 30 says He calls Heaven (The Spirit) and earth (our spirit) to bear witness (to testify) of the synergistic choice between man & God. Lest anyone dismiss Deuteronomy 30 as purely The Law, Paul sets the record straight that Deuteronomy 30 is talking about the righteousness that comes by faith:
Rom 10:5-11 NASB 5 For Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is based on law shall live by that righteousness. 6 But the righteousness based on faith speaks as follows: "DO NOT SAY IN YOUR HEART, 'WHO WILL ASCEND INTO HEAVEN?' (that is, to bring Christ down), 7 or 'WHO WILL DESCEND INTO THE ABYSS?' (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead)." 8 But what does it say? "THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART"--that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, 9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus [as] Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, "WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."
Paul goes so far as to say that you should not even say in your heart that the choice for salvation is made by God in Heaven. Paul says all we need to choose is already in our hearts... he agrees with Deuteronomy that it is not too difficult for us to make the choice to believe.
Further, that Deuteronomy 30 talks about the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in that it says "circumcision of the heart."
Rom 2:28-29 NASB 28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. 29 But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.
Does that indwelling of the spirit come BEFORE faith or after faith? The scripture is explicit that it comes AFTER faith.
Eph 1:13-14 NASB 13 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, 14 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.
I perceive now that your dedication to ultimate reconciliation comes from your absolute faith in Calvinistic doctrine. This post's deconstruction of Calvinist belief is off topic here, but I felt necessary to help you to let go of your universalist doctrine.
