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What about babies,toddlers, and the mentally handicapped? What's the Calvinist perspective on their fate?
This is where monergistic regeneration shines and where decision based (synergistic) regeneration fails.
Do you mean that all babies that die are of the elect?
I guess I should have phrased the question differently. According to Calvinism, does God predestine some babies, toddlers, and the mentally handicapped to hell?
I do not know that there is an official answer according to Calvinism. Personally I think the most honest answer is simply "I don't know with certainty". Personally the position I lean towards is compatible with the concept of covenant theology involving families of believers, such that the children of believers, the mentally handicapped of believers are among the elect of God.
Thanks for answering. Does Calvinism allow for second chances for acceptance of Christ in the afterlife? Some believe Jesus descended and preached to the souls in Hades before he rose again and that lost souls who died after the new covenant may still have a chance of repentance. Is there any Calvinist provision for that? Would a Muslim baby for example have a chance at paradise in the afterlife?
I am confident the number of elect/saved are higher through monergistic regeneration than would be through decisional (synergistic) regeneration.
How do you come to that conclusion? You mean if there would be synergetic salvation for babies? I don't think many hold that position.
I think you ignored the comment that followed, cherry picking I see. What I tried to open eyes to is the inconsistancy of synergism applied to the doctrines of salvation, especially the ordo salutis.
I don't want to go into the insanity of the belief some babies are elect and some not...
Those that hold to synergism and believe that Jesus died for all men, believe for that reason all babies will be saved. Some believe babies can't sin and are therefore saved. Others believe in accountabilty, that everyone will be judged according to what they have done with what been given them. In that case babies will be saved since they can't be held accountable to sin.
So does Calvinism believe that since some people die lost, God is purposefully trying to exclude people from salvation since He doesn't make mistakes and a 'second chance' would be an admission of failure on God's part?If the orthodox understanding of the attributes of God hold true which I believe they do, the notion of a "second chance" would seem to presuppose that God somehow made a mistake, an error and could not achieve His divine purpose or plan while they were on earth as we know it.
So does Calvinism believe that since some people die lost, God is purposefully trying to exclude people from salvation since He doesn't make mistakes and a 'second chance' would be an admission of failure on God's part?
So why does God show Himself to have a changeable will? What's the point of prayer and making our requests known to God if the essential details of our destiny are already predetermined? Why was God allow Abraham to bargain with him over Sodom or let Satan test Job?
Good Day, Roman2819
..... I am looking with little luck to find any greek NT information concordance, or geek word primary usage understanding to support this understanding... I do understand the notion of the reality of the action of Gods election would cause use to be humble before him for his Grace to us expressed in his election of us. Certainly we see that in the nation of Israel being the chosen people of God in the face of other nations whom God did not choose.
How much scripture does it take to make something true?? I expect that you hold to the trinity as expressed at Nicaea. Do you hold that doctrine to same litmus test, if you did you would have to reject that out right. What about the virgin birth....
In Him,
Bill
The only synergism where all babies will be saved would be of the universalist variety, because other synergists deny particularism in eternal election and application to particular individuals in the atonement, in the context of a blanket offering, it would not be consistent to say that Christ died for all infants since as a group infants consists of individual infants. What does a group of people consist of? Of course individuals make up a group. Said and done, God has mercy on whom He wills to have mercy, we have no right to judge. If justification were by accountability, either nobody would be saved, and or some will have room to boast within what was given to them.
God only passes over them by His prerogative acting according to His sovereign free will choices in electing His whomever He wills to mercy by pure grace.
Concordances will not explain that the word "Elect" (in Ephesians or Peter) is a humble term used in biblical times. I suppose you have to keep trying. I guess it is difficult for people living in modern western civilization to comprehend how words used in biblical times cannot be understood from English language and logic. Consider this:
Genesis 4:1 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain (RSV version)
Genesis 4:28: And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and called his name Seth (RSV)
In ancient religious manuscript, the word "Knew" means to have sexual relation, which is different from the way we use the same word today. This is an example of how words have different connotation.
Regarding your question, How much scripture does it take to make something true? In the Bible, the Holy Spirit is mentioned in many situations - in OT (Spirit came upon Samson and Saul, upon prophets Elijah and Elisha, and others), in the NT (at Pentecost). Enough evidence to believe in the existence of Trinity.
Interesting you never mentioned Mary's virgin birth, which is mentioned in Isaiah and Gospels. It is not quoted out of context if we believe that. However, to go on to say that Mary is the mother of God and we need to ask for forgiveness though her is not substantial in the Bible. I am not against the Catholics, but they based their believe on the verse where Jesus on the cross said to the disciples, "behold thy mother", and from there, Catholics went on to give Mary a title "Mother of God" etc etc. Likewise, too many Christians conjecture "individual predestination" based on a few random verses out of context.
So do all the saved elect end up in Calvinist denominations, or will you find saved elect in every Christian denomination?
Are there elect Catholics, Lutherans, Baptists, presuming they died with those denominational perspectives?
And are there professing Calvinists who believe they might be elect but have fallen short?
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