Does Calvinism Make God Unjust?

[TulipBee]

agree, you wouldnt be elect of God if you rejected Him.

only God knows me, not you

 

[Angel4Truth]

I prefer to not ignore the consequences of Adam's sin upon all His progeny. If an infant, or the mentally incapacitated is elect, he or she will be saved. Believing parents may hope—per Scripture—that their child dying in infancy will be saved, but not demand it be so.

AMR

Sin as being in the world touches us all (its consequences spread to all, in all kinds of ways). However, an infant "inheriting" or being culpable for the sins of others choices is false.

Ezekiel 18:20 "The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father's iniquity, nor will the father bear the punishment for the son's iniquity; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.

 

[Ktoyou]

Best for the explanation. I do not think infant death is God allowing nature of life where not the infant is a life in judgement the parents are chosen to that experience, as it must naturally occur and does upon those who must reconcile and never the infant must reconcile.

 

[Ask Mr. Religion]

Yes, it is like saying the refused the free ticket and did not get on the bus.

Assumes the one in question is really not spiritually dead, but merely wounded, yet still able. The spiritually dead in Adam can do nothing until first quickened by God (Jer. 17:9; Mark 7:21-23; Eph. 2:2; Eph. 2:4-5; Titus 3:5; John 3:19; Rom. 3:10-12; 5:6; 6:16-20; Eph. 2:1,3;1 Cor. 2:14).

Exactly which in no way diminishes that the ticket was paid for already whether it was used or not. Payment was made.

If payment was made for all then those in Hell are being punished unjustly. The debt has been paid, yet they are punished. To avoid this conclusion one must argue by implying that the payment was not actually full payment, but a down payment, requiring yet another contribution—fallen man's wise actions inclined towards the good—to render in full the debt owed.

Faith comes by the hearing of the word of God (Romans 10:17). Hearing God’s word is the way faith comes. The hearing of the word of God is the mechanism or the means God uses when God gives faith to someone – but not all who hear the word of God receive this precious gift. Some hear the word and refuse to believe it. Yet, some hear it, believe it and are saved.

From this it should be asked, Who then receives faith?

Acts 13:48 teaches us, “..and all who were ordained to eternal life believed.”

Jesus said these words to a group of people, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep.”

Examine that statement carefully, asking, “What was the reason these people did not believe (according to Jesus)”?

The answer is clear: They did not believe because they were not His sheep.

Our Lord did not say that they were not His sheep because they did not believe, making the unbelief the cause of them not being sheep. No, it was their not being His sheep that was the root cause of their unbelief. Jesus said “you do not believe because you are not My sheep.”

In contrast to this, Jesus then says, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:25-30)

AMR

 

[beloved57]

Actually, it's your job to show that being once reconciled to God means you are "eternally saved." You can't expect someone to prove a negative. And before you try that, I'll warn you that Ezekiel, again, is going to contradict your conclusion before you even start. The righteous man that turns from his ways shall meet death just like the wicked, it says.

You said it doesnt mean that. So what scripture says it ? You think you can make statements and dont prove them ?

I got proof from Rom 5:10 that the ones who have been reconciled by Christ's death, shall also be saved further by His Life. That sounds like eternal salvation to me !

 

[Ask Mr. Religion]

How can an infant or a miscarried child have faith and respond to the gospel of grace?

Assumes the faith at the instant of re-birth springs from man versus the faith granted by God to man at the moment of regeneration.

Wrestling with infant moral capacity compared to a mature adult is really not the right way to look at this.

I am inclined to believe from Scripture, although it is not explicitly revealed, that heaven will not be populated by the elect miscarried or the infant as actual beings at these ages. The measure of difference between a child in his mother's womb and the most learned man on earth is minuscule before the Lord of creation. In heaven, whatever way we will "be like Him" will require a humanly inconceivable improvement and expansion of our understanding and maturity, and it will happen in "the twinkling of an eye". Since those promises apply to all the elect, the distinctions we make between pauper and prince, newborn and ninety-year-old, or grade-school dropout and genius it seems to me will be akin to the difference in size between grains of sand as they appear to our eyes now. The eldest among us are not much more than babes before the Ancient of Days.

Augustine was perhaps onto something when he reasoned that all in heaven may be around the age of thirty or so, given that past that age mankind begins its decline into old age and death.

AMR

 

[Angel4Truth]

Assumes the one in question is really not spiritually dead, but merely wounded, yet still able. The spiritually dead in Adam can do nothing until first quickened by God (Jer. 17:9; Mark 7:21-23; Eph. 2:2; Eph. 2:4-5; Titus 3:5; John 3:19; Rom. 3:10-12; 5:6; 6:16-20; Eph. 2:1,3;1 Cor. 2:14).



If payment was made for all then those in Hell are being punished unjustly.
AMR

False, a wedding was paid for and all received an invitation. Didn't you read that parable?

Same thing, i can purchase you a gift of entry to a banquet and you can refuse it, and remain outside.

You have to receive it, to use it even though it was already paid for.

God hands all men at some point a measure of faith in order to receive the gift of grace, they can receive it, or walk away.

He will allow them eternity without Him, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

 

[beloved57]

Actually, it's your job to show that being once reconciled to God means you are "eternally saved." You can't expect someone to prove a negative. And before you try that, I'll warn you that Ezekiel, again, is going to contradict your conclusion before you even start. The righteous man that turns from his ways shall meet death just like the wicked, it says.

I dont think you understand ezekiel, but the Apostles did, Christ gave them understanding of the scriptures, the prophets. Now those Christ died for, by His death alone have been both sanctified and perfected forever Heb 10:10,14

¹⁰ By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

¹⁴ For by one offering[His Death] he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.

Jesus says a special prayer for them that shall believe on Him through their [the Apostles] word Jn 17:17-20

¹⁷ Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
¹⁸ As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
¹⁹ And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
²⁰ Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;

You need to prove from scripture that Ezekiel disproves what Christ's Apostles believed and taught. Good Luck !

 

[Angel4Truth]

Assumes the faith at the instant of re-birth springs from man versus the faith granted by God to man at the moment of regeneration.

Wrestling with infant moral capacity compared to a mature adult is really not the right way to look at this.

I am inclined to believe from Scripture, although it is not explicitly revealed, that heaven will not be populated by the elect miscarried or the infant as actual beings at these ages. The measure of difference between a child in his mother's womb and the most learned man on earth is minuscule before the Lord of creation. In heaven, whatever way we will "be like Him" will require a humanly inconceivable improvement and expansion of our understanding and maturity, and it will happen in "the twinkling of an eye". Since those promises apply to all the elect, the distinctions we make between pauper and prince, newborn and ninety-year-old, or grade-school dropout and genius it seems to me will be akin to the difference in size between grains of sand as they appear to our eyes now. The eldest among us are not much more than babes before the Ancient of Days.

Augustine was perhaps onto something when he reasoned that all in heaven may be around the age of thirty or so, given that past that age mankind begins its decline into old age and death.

AMR

I quoted where Christ said until He spoke to them, they had no sin and where a child isnt punished for the sins of another. They are innocent, until the age of accountability. Both the words of Christ and old testament scripture points to this being the case, where responsibility to seek and find and receive the truth is there.

There is a reason only some of a certain age could enter into the promised land.

Numbers 14:28-30

Say to them, ‘As I live, declares the LORD, what you have said in my hearing I will do to you: your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness, and of all your number, listed in the census from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against me, not one shall come into the land where I swore that I would make you dwell, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.

All those under 20 were not held accountable with the others.

 

[Angel4Truth]

And i disagree we add one thing to what He did, He grants the faith, we either retain or extend the gift He offers - if we reject it, in His sovereignty we will be forever separated from Him, no one will escape giving account, and they shall have no excuse because they will have received the truth via His Spirit. Ultimate fate is His alone to dictate which He does.

Him allowing us error in THIS LIFE, is necessary for us to freely love. Love isnt forced.

Would you have wanted to force your wife to love you, or for her to offer it freely to you?

Requoting, i think this was missed...

 

[Ask Mr. Religion]

And i disagree we add one thing to what He did, He grants the faith, we either retain or extend the gift He offers - if we reject it, in His sovereignty we will be forever separated from Him, no one will escape giving account, and they shall have no excuse because they will have received the truth via His Spirit. Ultimate fate is His alone to dictate which He does.

God grants faith to His elect children. The elect cannot be lost to Him, for God grants what man is incapable of the instant of regeneration. Faith is but an instrument by which we apprehend the object of that faith, Our Lord.

Him allowing us error in THIS LIFE, is necessary for us to freely love. Love isnt forced.

We could not even take a breath, much less love, were it not God's doing.

There is no Biblical basis for the idea that God cannot cause men to love him; in fact, this claim flies in the face of many Biblical passages and themes. The Bible says, quite clearly, that God does cause people to love him. Moses wrote, “The Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendents to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deut. 30:6). The reason we love God is that God caused us to love Him. I see no plausible way to avoid the clear meaning of Deut. 30:6. When God works on our hearts by circumcising them, the result is that we love Him. Apparently, it is possible for God to cause people to love him, even if men are not capable of doing this.

The Scriptures also teach that God can cause a man to fall in love with a certain woman. Samson is one example of this. When Samson falls in love with a Philistine woman, the author of Judges writes, “this was from the Lord.” Since God can turn a heart anywhere He desires, God can make people fall in love. Apparently by manipulating circumstances, and Samson’s heart, God made him fall in love with a Philistine woman. This simple Biblical observation strips the often used analogy of yours of any real potency. God’s ability to cause Samson to love his spouse shows that it is possible for God to cause a person to love another person. If we are willing to admit this, why not admit that God can cause people to love Him?

The plain truth of the matter is that if God did not cause us to love him, we never would have. God moves our hearts to love and obey him—in fact, if God did not do this, we would be left in our sins. Jeremiah writes, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots? Neither can you do good who are accustomed to doing evil” (Jer. 13:23). And all men are accustomed to doing evil as Gen. 8:21 testifies: “every inclination of [man’s] heart is evil from childhood.” Before Christ, we were “God-haters” (Rom. 1:30) and “enemies of God” (Rom. 5:10). Therefore, not only does God cause men to love and obey Him but God is the only Power that can cause sinful men to love and obey Him. We are as powerless to change ourselves, as a leopard is to change its spots. In view of all of this, we should not mock the idea of God causing men to love Him. Rather we should be thankful for this truth, and pray for God to cause our unbelieving friends to love the Lord with all their heart and soul.

Our loving God does not save us. God's loving us, does.

AMR

 

[Angel4Truth]

God grants faith to His elect children. The elect cannot be lost to Him, for God grants what man is incapable of the instant of regeneration. Faith is but an instrument by which we apprehend the object of that faith, Our Lord.


We could not even take a breath, much less love, were it not God's doing.

[

Never said otherwise, please tell me, how HIM allowing us to say no in this life, diminishes His Sovereignty in any way.

PS there are a lot of people that do not love God. Do you actually believe that part of Gods character is to harm someone without cause?

 

[Ask Mr. Religion]

Sin as being in the world touches us all (its consequences spread to all, in all kinds of ways). However, an infant "inheriting" or being culpable for the sins of others choices is false.

Ezekiel 18:20 "The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father's iniquity, nor will the father bear the punishment for the son's iniquity; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.

I have noted often that once one denies original sin, all manner of heterodoxy will appear. This is not some Calvinist doctrine, but the doctrine of all orthodox Christendom. It has come under much complaint with the rise of Finneyism, open theism, and humanistic thinking among the faithful, but the doctrine stands per Scripture.

The infant is not inheriting Adam's sin. The infant and all Adam's progeny are judged as sinners, guilty in Adam as if each of us was there with him. It is a judicial declaration from God upon Adam and his progeny, as well as the earth, as the result of the fall. Adam stood in all our stead as the God's created representative of all mankind, our Federal representative. Given the ability to sin or not to sin. Adam failed the test to obey. He failed on all our behalf as our duly elected representative by God. We could not ask for a better representative, for a perfect God made Adam so. Decrying the fact that we are being visited a judgment wrongly for Adam's choices that were not our choices, or we were not there to be tested individually, ignores the historical account of exactly who Adam was in relation to all mankind. Misunderstanding that federal relationship of the First Adam leads to misundertanding the Second Adam.

AMR

 

[Angel4Truth]

I have noted often that once one denies original sin, all manner of heterodoxy will appear. This is not some Calvinist doctrine, but the doctrine of all orthodox Christendom. It has come under much complaint with the rise of Finneyism, open theism, and humanistic thinking among the faithful, but the doctrine stands per Scripture.

Im not an open theist, nor do i deny original sin. Sin passed to all men, as all men die, the consequences of adams willful sin choice caused sin to enter the world and there is no such thing as sin that doesn't touch all things in this world.

These 2 concepts in the verse below do not match, and they are where many people get confused, they believe a child inherits the sins of others when i already showed in Gods word, that is false.

Ezekiel 18:20 "The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father's iniquity, nor will the father bear the punishment for the son's iniquity; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.

and Deuteronomy 24:16 it says, "Fathers shall not be put to death for their sons, nor shall sons be put to death for their fathers; everyone shall be put to death for his own sin."

Contrasted with:

Exodus 20:5-6 says "I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing loving-kindness to thousands [of generations], to those who love Me and keep My commandments"

as well as others like it, the visiting of sin on, and inheriting the sins of others and being responsible, aren't the same thing.

On the latter, it means that what we do can have consequences in the lives of others, but not that they are responsible for our sin choices.

Example, a meth addicted mother has a crack baby, the baby suffers developmental issues and suffers, (mothers sins visit her) however, she is NOT guilty for her mothers sin. She will only be guilty for her own.

This verse however (which is used unfortunately out of context by skeptics and others unknowing context, to claim God makes us responsible for another's sin:

The infant is not inheriting Adam's sin.

Agree.

The infant and all Adam's progeny are judged as sinners, guilty in Adam as if each of us was there with him.

Disagree. None of us are guilty for Adams sins. Already shown scripture states otherwise.

It is a judicial declaration from God upon Adam and his progeny, as well as the earth, as the result of the fall.

Agree, because of Adam sin entered the world and affected everything once pure.

Adam stood in all our stead as the God's created representative of all mankind, our Federal representative.

Disagree.

Given the ability to sin or not to sin. Adam failed the test to obey.

agree

He failed on all our behalf as our duly elected representative by God.

Disagree. Adam was not elected for us, and God never desired us to have a king. He desired one on one relationship from the beginning- as shown when Israel wanted a king.

We could not ask for a better representative, for a perfect God made Adam so. Decrying the fact that we are being visited a judgment wrongly for Adam's choices that were not our choices, or we were not there to be tested individually, ignores the historical account of exactly who Adam was in relation to all mankind. Misunderstanding that federal relationship of the First Adam leads to misunderstanding the Second Adam.

AMR

Again Disagree, we aren't guilty for Adams choice, we suffer the result of it, which Christ restores, which is relationship with God, a torn veil.

 

[marhig]

It appears that your salvation is dependent upon your performance, which means that you may not be saved. It is no wonder that you are not secure in your salvation, you shouldn't be, because its all about you.

My performance counts for nothing. I am a sinner saved by grace. My salvation is at the right hand of God in heaven. I am saved by the doing and the dying of Jesus, plus nothing. Good luck with your do-it-yourself salvation in the judgment.

See that's the thing, a sinner saved by grace. How do people see that, that's the question? I know I'm a sinner, and it's not what I do. I know my flesh is an abomination, I know exactly what I'd be like without God and without the holy spirit. I am absolutely a sinner, but it's the saving by grace that I see differently to some. They see saving by grace as being totally saved by just saying "I believe". But I see that the God by his grace is saving me from sinning everyday through faith and obedience. He is blessing me with his spirit and the spirit is teaching me, guiding me, stopping me from doing wrong, pricking my conscience always and it's whether I listen, I have freewill and a choice, I can either listen to the spirit or live by the lusts of my flesh and by my will, I have choices to make always, listen to God or give into Satan. As I said. I know me and I know I'd be living my life in the flesh to the full without the living God, I'm no goody two shoes. God through Christ has saved me from that life. And Christ through the spirit is saving me every day from myself as he wars with my flesh and encourages me to fight myself and strengthens me to overcome Satan.

I was shocked the other day, I read about legion at the tombs, and I'd never seen before that when the devil's left legion, that they entered into 2000 swine feeding on the mountain and I thought of how many things wrong within our hearts we can have and not realise, and without Christ, just like in legion they will remain there, we need him to come and cast them out, so that we can see and hear and be in our right mind and know God. Because before we know God we're dead, spiritually deaf, blind, dumb and lame in him. But when we hear the gospel of our lord Christ Jesus, we have a chance to see the light and be taken out of darkness and be saved from that life of death and sin. If we listen and believe him. He is the only way, the only truth and the only life and through him is the only way back to God, he is our perfect example but we must listen and obey and live right before God.

Wilful sin separates us from God, faith, listening and obeying him brings life and without that life, were dead in our sins. Saying we believe and then living in the flesh isn't enough, we must live it out and live by the will of God.

Matthew 7

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.*Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?*And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

 

[marhig]

Those that are reconciled to God are saved because they are in a right relationship with God, because Christ died for them. Now they are still going to be saved from the power and presence of sin, but they are not lost. It's a contradiction to say one is reconciled to God and lost in their sins at the same time.

You'll know who truly belongs to God, because they will be living right before him and they will be overcoming their flesh and turning from sin. You'll know them by their fruits! It's not those who just speak it, but those who live it out. All of God's people in the Bible lived it out, and if we truly belong to God, then we will be living it out also, denying our flesh and living by his will, bringing the love of Christ to those around us and those we meet.

 

[marhig]

Marhig



Who says being reconciled to God doesn't mean being eternally saved ? Show me the scripture that says that!

I can be reconciled to my natural father, that doesn't mean I can't walk away again. Nothing can take us from Gods hands, Satan has got no hope. The only way we fall is if we are tempted and drawn away by our own lusts and listen to Satan.

To reconcile means to restore friendly relations, which God did with us did through Jesus Christ. But that doesn't mean we can't turn away again!

 

[marhig]

You said it doesnt mean that. So what scripture says it ? You think you can make statements and dont prove them ?

I got proof from Rom 5:10 that the ones who have been reconciled by Christ's death, shall also be saved further by His Life. That sounds like eternal salvation to me !

What do you believe that being saved by his life means?

 

[marhig]

Romans 11:29 For God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable.

Hebrews 7:25 Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

John 5:24 Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not come under judgment. Indeed, he has crossed over from death to life.

None of that says that we can't turn away. That is only if we keep our faith and obey God and his commandments. We can be drawn by the lusts of our flesh and we can fall, if we listen to Satan when we're tempted.

Tried by fire means just that, we are tried, meaning we have free will to choose whether we listen to God and obey, or listen to Satan and sin.

If we keep wilfully sinning, then we are workers of iniquity and we don't belong to Christ.

We can turn at any time. Once saved always saved is a false doctrine.

Hebrews 6

For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come. If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is.nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned

 

[Ask Mr. Religion]

False, a wedding was paid for and all received an invitation. Didn't you read that parable?

Did you?

In examining the parable...

Spoiler

We know from other passages of Scripture that those who refuse God’s invitation to come to the wedding feast designed for His Son really cannot come, for they are dead in their trespasses and sins (Eph. 2: 1). In fact, Our Lord said on one occasion, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (John 6: 44). So, it would be easy to conclude that it was not really the case that these invitees would not come; rather, they could not come because their hearts needed to be changed so that they would have a desire or disposition to come. That is all true, but it is also true that we cannot do what we will not do. Thus, there is a sense in which these people could not come to the feast precisely because they would not.

Every person in every moment of decision chooses according to his strongest inclination at the moment. This is the free will spoken of in Scripture. That is, no one ever does something that, in the final analysis, he does not want to do.

The ones who were invited to the king’s feast were not willing to come. That they were unable to will otherwise in no way removes from them their duty to come. In modern evangelicalism, the customary way of doing evangelism is to invite people to place their trust in Christ. However, that concept is quite foreign to Scripture. God does not invite people to come to Christ; He commands them to come. The invitation in Jesus’ parable was no different. The invitees were given a royal summons and it was their duty to obey.

The invitees indifference to the King as they tended to worldly matters and outright hatred of some provoked a righteously vengeful response from the king whose patience had been exhausted. Nevertheless, the king would not be thwarted for it was his express desire that his son should be honored and that every particular seat made available be taken at his wedding feast. If the original invitees were not interested in coming or were violently opposed to the king, still the king would find people who would come to the wedding feast.

By the way, this portion of the parable of the wedding feast had much in common with some of Jesus’ previous teachings since His triumphal entry. It showed once again that those who had been entrusted with the kingdom—Israel’s priests, elders, scribes, etc.—had forfeited their place by rejecting the King, Jesus Himself. Therefore, the kingdom would be taken from them and given to others.

Note from the parable that the last group of servants went out to the highway and invited whomever they found there, good or bad, to come to the king’s banquet. Now these people were delighted to come, so they hurriedly prepared themselves. Yet when the guests were assembled together and the king came amongst them, he encountered one man who had come in without proper attire.

If we are not clothed in the righteousness of Christ, we will not be welcome at the wedding feast of the Lamb in heaven, because all of our righteousness, the Bible says, is like filthy rags (Isa. 64: 6). Ours is an alien righteousness, that of Another, not of ourselves. We can enter the kingdom of heaven only if we are clothed in the righteousness of Jesus, which is imputed to all who believe (Zech. 3: 3-4).

When confronted by the King the improperly clothed man could offer up no excuses, but was speechless, just as Scripture teaches about man’s silence before the tribunal of God on judgment day (Ps. 76: 8-9; Zeph. 1: 7; Zech. 2: 13).

Finally in Matthew 22: 14 we find that from the parable the many are called means that many have been invited to the wedding feast. But not all those invited are actually the ones who are supposed to be there, because few are chosen. This is the general call or the outward call: the gospel is proclaimed to all people everywhere, both those who will believe and those who will not.

However, Paul also mentions another kind of calling, the effective call or inward call from God that comes powerfully to individuals and always brings a positive response. When the gospel is proclaimed, only some are inwardly called—those who are the elect—who respond with true faith (1 Cor. 1: 24, 26-28). This is consistent with Our Lord’s statement that “few are chosen,” for the ones “chosen” (eklektos, “selected, chosen”) are the elect, a term used by Jesus to refer to his true disciples (Matt. 11: 27; 24: 22, 24, 31).

The ones who were invited to the king’s feast were not willing to come. That they were unable to will otherwise in no way removes from them their duty to come. In modern evangelicalism, the customary way of doing evangelism is to invite people to place their trust in Christ. However, that concept is quite foreign to Scripture. God does not invite people to come to Christ; He commands them to come. The invitation in Jesus’ parable was no different. The invitees were given a royal summons and it was their duty to obey.

By the way, this portion of the parable of the wedding feast had much in common with some of Jesus’ previous teachings since His triumphal entry. It showed once again that those who had been entrusted with the kingdom—Israel’s priests, elders, scribes, etc.—had forfeited their place by rejecting the King, Jesus Himself. Therefore, the kingdom would be taken from them and given to others, all kinds of others from other nations.

Note also from the parable that the last group of servants went out to the highway and invited whomever they found there, good or bad, to come to the king’s banquet. Now these people were delighted to come, so they hurriedly prepared themselves. Yet when the guests were assembled together and the king came amongst them, he encountered one man who had come in without proper attire.

If we are not clothed in the righteousness of Christ, we will not be welcome at the wedding feast of the Lamb in heaven, because all of our righteousness, the Bible says, is like filthy rags (Isa. 64: 6). Ours is an alien righteousness, that of Another, not of ourselves. We can enter the kingdom of heaven only if we are clothed in the righteousness of Jesus, which is imputed to all who believe (Zech. 3: 3-4).

When confronted by the King the improperly clothed man could offer up no excuses, but was speechless, just as Scripture teaches about man’s silence before the tribunal of God on judgment day (Ps. 76: 8-9; Zeph. 1: 7; Zech. 2: 13).

Finally in Matthew 22: 14 we find that from the parable the many are called means that many have been invited to the wedding feast. But not all those invited are actually the ones who are supposed to be there, because few are chosen. This is the general call or the outward call: the gospel is proclaimed to all people everywhere, both those who will believe and those who will not.

However, Paul also mentions another kind of calling, the effective call or inward call from God that comes powerfully to individuals and brings a positive response. When the gospel is proclaimed, only some are inwardly called—those who are the elect—who respond with true faith (1 Cor. 1: 24, 26-28). This is consistent with Our Lord’s statement that “few are chosen,” for the ones “chosen” (eklektos, “selected, chosen”) are the elect, a term used by Jesus to refer to his true disciples (Matt. 11: 27; 24: 22, 24, 31). The man in the wrong attire was one of the professors of faith that does not possess the faith.

God hands all men at some point a measure of faith in order to receive the gift of grace, they can receive it, or walk away.

So this prevenient grace given to all does not work for all, so there is something else involved, man's correct choice. I avoid views that give man a reason to boast.

AMR