[Staff edit].
Of course men believe from their hearts. God opens their hearts.
“One of them was Lydia from Thyatira, a merchant of expensive purple cloth, who worshiped God. As she listened to us, the Lord opened her heart, and she accepted what Paul was saying.” Acts 16:14
Is your view that opening the heart is tantamount to causing belief?
“And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 16:17
But revealing truth in no way guarantees the result of believing the truth. Just ask any school teacher.
God gives some men new hearts through which they believe. No “Calvinist” teaches that God “makes men believe”, as you charge. Nor do I.
Don't you see the issue? If God regenerates some, in order for them to believe, then certainly He is the cause of belief in those He has so chosen. No different than "making men believe".
Reformed theology believes that regeneration is necessary in for a person to believe, and that the result of regeneration WILL BE belief.
How is that different from God making men believe?
Of course men are free to believe or refuse (relatively free of course). No one has said otherwise.
I think you are missing the point. One is not really free to believe if God has to first regenerate them so they will believe. That should be obvious.
But the fact from scripture is that men do not and cannot believe without God’s special grace in opening their heart (giving them a new heart).
Nope. Please share any verse that actually says that regeneration precedes faith in Christ.
Then I will prove the opposite, from Scripture.
Receiving the indwelling Holy Spirit and being sealed for eternity by Him is received because of faith.
Yes.
Faith is exercised by those with new hearts.
I will wait for any verse that says that regeneration precedes believing. Unless the Bible says it, it is just an opinion, an assumption.
Of course. That’s why humanity is without excuse. They are condemned because they will not believe.
Back to square 1. If one can only believe IF they have been regenerated by God, then they HAVE AN EXCUSE.
At the Great White Throne Judgment, the unbeliever will have the legitimate defense that God didn't choose for him to believe, therefore he couldn't believe apart from that new heart that Calvin talked about.
Of course man would have an excuse if Calvinism were true.
But since man has no excuse, Calvinism cannot be true.
Yes it is. No one can come to the Son unless drawn by the Father. God draws them by opening the hearts of certain people and not others.
Please read the very next verse, because it explains v.44.
John 6:44-45
44 “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.
45 It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me.
In v.45 we see that everyone will be "taught by God". Hm. Taught what, exactly? Well, Rom 1:19-20 tells us clearly.
19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.
20 For since the creation of the world
God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
This is what God has taught all men. His eternal power and divine nature. Everyone has SEEN THEM.
So, what happens when the students aren't paying any attention?
21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.
22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools
23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals or reptiles.
As a result of being so taught, they have no excuse for not glorifying Him as God nor giving thanks to Him for being God.