God’s Foreknowledge

[Mark Quayle]

So the people who are not saved... They're not saved through any fault of their own, but because God just decided not to save them. And yet they are the ones who suffer for it? That doesn't seem fair to me.

They are the ones who suffer for what?

There's a lot more to being saved, than just avoiding the Lake of Fire, and going to Heaven. (Not that you said otherwise, but the tone of your questions sounds like that is all this is about.)

None of us deserve to be saved. He chose some of us for his own sake and for his own purposes. The rest he chose for his own use, also, but (like atheists merely fail to believe) he merely failed to save them. They get what they deserve --the Elect (chosen) don't get what they deserve.

Those that go to the Lake of Fire go there because they sinned against God --not because God chose not to save them. There's a story in the New Testament, a man hires workers for a certain sum to harvest his fields, and halfway through the day, he sees they won't get the job done, so he hires some more, and again, he hired more, when there was little time left in the day. When all the workers came to be paid he gave each one the same total amount. The ones who had worked all day complained, but he told them, (my paraphrase) "You got everything you agreed on, so why are you complaining because I am generous towards somebody? Don't I have the right to do as I please with [what is mine] (my money)?"

Why only some?

Then why doesn't he choose to save everyone?

The Bible tells the end result of those particular ones he chose, and created: They are the members (parts?) (cells?) of the Bride of Christ, the dwelling place of God. It says they were chosen from the foundation of the world. He created them for that particular use. There are no substitutes. What God determines to accomplish, will indeed come to pass.

Those he did not choose are for a different use --not simply for the purpose of damnation, but for the purpose of showing God's justice and purity, God's glory.

 

[Kylie]

They are the ones who suffer for what?

There's a lot more to being saved, than just avoiding the Lake of Fire, and going to Heaven. (Not that you said otherwise, but the tone of your questions sounds like that is all this is about.)

Surely it is better to be saved than to not be saved. And yet they miss out through no fault of their own.

None of us deserve to be saved. He chose some of us for his own sake and for his own purposes. The rest he chose for his own use, also, but (like atheists merely fail to believe) he merely failed to save them. They get what they deserve --the Elect (chosen) don't get what they deserve.

Wait...

God FAILED to save them?

Those that go to the Lake of Fire go there because they sinned against God --not because God chose not to save them. There's a story in the New Testament, a man hires workers for a certain sum to harvest his fields, and halfway through the day, he sees they won't get the job done, so he hires some more, and again, he hired more, when there was little time left in the day. When all the workers came to be paid he gave each one the same total amount. The ones who had worked all day complained, but he told them, (my paraphrase) "You got everything you agreed on, so why are you complaining because I am generous towards somebody? Don't I have the right to do as I please with [what is mine] (my money)?"

I can understand their point of view.

If I am promised a certain payment for one day of work, and then someone else comes in and gets the same payment for half a day of work, I gotta figure that the boss has changed how much he values a day of work. Since he has hired new people at twice the rate of pay that he hired me, I'm going to conclude that he's underpaying me.

The Bible tells the end result of those particular ones he chose, and created: They are the members (parts?) (cells?) of the Bride of Christ, the dwelling place of God. It says they were chosen from the foundation of the world. He created them for that particular use. There are no substitutes. What God determines to accomplish, will indeed come to pass.

I have no idea what any of this is meant to be talking about.

Those he did not choose are for a different use --not simply for the purpose of damnation, but for the purpose of showing God's justice and purity, God's glory.

So God created them to be a bad example?