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Now, that is a question that no Christian viewpoint on God’s sovereignty and salvation can give a complete enough answer to settle this dispute in our minds entirely.

I’m not saying, that as Christians, there’s no biblical answer.

And, that we cannot rest in the answer given.

Because I do completely rest in the answer God gives us.

But, if I’m honest, I wouldn’t mind an answer that suits the minds of people I speak to.

And, that is a weakness in my own heart.

That is not a weakness in the biblical answer.

But, typically we would like more of an explanation.

But, this morning I want to look at what I would call…

Objections to What Christ is Teaching in this Discourse

I don’t necessarily mean objections in the negative sense.

I just mean our minds naturally throw up arguments against God and His Word.

What Jesus is teaching in this discourse and, really throughout Scripture is so opposed to what the natural mind thinks and wants to believe…

That as Christians, we have to be prayerful when we’re dealing with such difficult truths…

Difficult because of the absolute friction it causes in our minds.

Now, I said objections, but maybe questions sounds better.

But many of the questions are made into objections laid against what Christ is teaching here.

And, many of those objections are then made points of contention…

And, many add straw men arguments to the objections in order to convince others of their point.

Let’s look at some of the questions raised about what Jesus is teaching here:

#1 – If All that the Father gives Christ will indeed come to Christ…

So, that all believers through the ages…

From Genesis to the future consummation were given to Christ by the Father…

Does that means that all the people that do not come to Christ were not given to Christ by the Father?

The biblical answer to that question is…

—> Yes, it does mean that explicitly.

A Follow Up…

#2 – So, then the question arises…well why wouldn’t all people be given to Christ?

Which is really asking this…

Why isn’t God a universalist?

Why doesn’t God save everyone?

Obviously, God is just and justice must be met for all transgressions against God’s Law.

Sin is an offense to the character of God.

But, then one could ask, well, if Christ was willing to atone for the sins of the elect…

Why not atone for the sins of all people?

But, I will say that along with Isaiah that I quoted last Sunday and other Prophets in the OT such as Moses who says in…

Deuteronomy 29:29 (ESV)

29 “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.

Meaning…what God has revealed about Himself in Creation, Conscience and His Word are enough to hold us without excuse for not obeying & worshipping Him.

Paul gives us a very clear biblical answer to this very objection/question…

I want you to turn with me to Romans 9 and we will look at a few sections here. I would encourage you to read the whole chapter and the surrounding chapters, and the whole book.

But, for time sake, I want us to look at what Paul says in a few of the sections here in Chapter 9.

When Paul is clarifying that the promised offspring (plural) from Abraham would come through the promised seed.

And, that physical seed is Isaac not Esau.

Romans 9:9–13 (ESV)

9 For this is what the promise said: “About this time next year I will return, and Sarah shall have a son.” 10 And not only so, but also when Rebekah had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, 11 though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad—in order that God’s purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls— 12 she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” 13 As it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”

Now, Paul anticipates how this would make his readers feel and what they may think…

And, they’re just like us.

So, Paul says…

Romans 9:14 (ESV)

14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means!

Now, let me stop there.

And, back up to where our trouble with God really begins.

Romans 9:13 (ESV)

13 As it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”

Our natural response, meaning our response when we are not thinking biblically is v.13.

But, the issue, the mind blowing response that we have with v.13 should not be…

Esau I hated.

Biblically speaking that should be easy.

Yeah, God should hate all people because all have sinned and spend their lives suppressing the truth of God.

Our mind blowing response and the starting point to thinking biblically should be…

Jacob have I loved.

How could God love Jacob?

A usurper.

A liar.

A cheat.

A deceiver and flatterer of the worst sort.

How could God love Jacob?

That’s the real question.

That’s the question we ask and ponder with difficulty when we are thinking biblically.

And, hence, how could He love me?!

Now, back to what Paul states…

Romans 9:14 (ESV)

14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means!

Is God unjust?

Certainly not.

Romans 9:15–16 (ESV)

15 For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” 16 So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.

Is it unjust for God to elect some, but not all?

Paul states unashamedly, By no means!

God, being God, has the right to have compassion on some to redeem…

But, is not obligated to redeem any, much less all.

Paul then gives an example of Pharaoh and how God raised Pharaoh up to the position of power that Pharaoh had…

And, then states that God did it to show God’s power…

And, that the power and glory of God would be renown throughout the earth.

Paul anticipates a likely response and says…

Romans 9:19–20 (ESV)

19 You will say to me then, “Why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?” 20 But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?”

Notice Paul didn’t follow v.19 by saying…

Oh, wait you’re misunderstanding God here. Of course you have autonomy and God certainly looks down into the future at your decisions and your actions in your life and then decides to have compassion on those who deserve it.

That reasoning is out there.

I’ve heard it said many times.

Honestly, I understand it.

Before I really came to terms and surrendered myself to the Sovereignty of God in all things, including salvation…

All of those types of arguments popped up in my head.

I was desperately trying to hold on to the kingship of Kent.

‌It’s a defense mechanism, I believe, to defend individual autonomy...

And, in some cases we mistakenly think God’s fairness needs defending.

So, we tweak our definition of God to fit what we like to imagine rather than what God has revealed.

And, I say this with love towards those who aren’t in agreement.

I understand, I think, what you’re going through.

We want God to sound as like-able to the natural mind as possible.

Why?

#1 – Because we think evangelism is a sales pitch rather than speaking truth into people’s lives and letting God make the increase or not.

We want God to sound as fair as possible to the the natural man…

Who, by the way, hates God and does not and will not acknowledge that they are sinners against God and that they lack any righteousness in themselves, all together.

#2 – And, I’ve said this already, but if we’re not careful we want God to be as much like we imagine Him as possible rather than have our minds molded to how God defines Himself in Scripture.

If I may humbly say, both of those are horrific road blocks to understanding God in a more full and rich way…

And a greater, deeper and more abiding worship of God.

Is God Fair?

I really believe that many that object to what Christ is saying and work really hard to not let Jesus say, what He is clearly saying…

Is they want God to be fair.

But, they don’t realize that it’s still not making God fair in the terms of the world.

Or in the terms

But, the reality is that we don’t really want fair.

Fair is everyone goes to hell.

Mercy is that some our redeemed.

My Own Testimony

I want to pause and readily confess that it took me some time to finally surrender to what is being taught.

I came to an acknowledgement of the sovereignty of God in salvation over two decades ago.

But, it was not an immediate acceptance by me.

My mind and heart just kept kicking against them.

And, I just kept saying to myself…

But what about this and that?

Yeah, that seems to be what the Bible is teaching but what about this?

Well, that can’t be right because that doesn’t seem fair to my way of thinking…or the way my flesh has taught me to think.

But, finally, after I just kept going back to the Word of God repeatedly…

God’s Word just kept confronting me with this…

Am I the God who I’ve revealed myself to be?

—OR—

Am I the God you imagine me to be?

Who you think I should be…does not change me into being that?

And, it squared me up to realizing that God is who He is and who He has revealed Himself to be…

And, our preferences do not and cannot change Him.

And, it is our preferences/way of thinking that need changing, not Him.

Yet, at the same time…

As we walk through these teachings we should be prayerful for all of us.

And, patient with one another.

Not everyone is at the same place.

And, it is God’s timing that is perfect, not ours.

So, let love cover all.

Now, with that being said I want to read…

Deuteronomy 29:29 (ESV)

29 “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.

There are certain things that God has sovereignly chose to not reveal to us.

Some things God may withhold for a season and reveal later.

Some things God has chosen to not reveal at all in this life.

We don’t know what and we do not know why.

But, we are invoked to trust Him with what we cannot understand and do not know…

As, He has proven Himself worthy.

And, the reason I bring this up is because we like to have things all figured out.

We like things to be in able to fit in the system of our mind.

We like to feel that we have God figured out.

The danger with that is then we try to put God in a box.

And, even if something is scriptural, if it doesn’t fit in the box we’ve created for God…

We dismiss it. Rather than redesign the box.

Objections to Irresistible Grace/Effectual Calling

If the gospel is preached and people reject it…

Isn’t that an evidence that people resist God’s grace to them in the gospel preached?

v.40 The Gospel Call Is A Real Offer

The Hardness of the Human Heart Does Not Negate the Responsibility of All Men/Women to Repent & Believe Upon Jesus

What About the “Whoever” & “Everyone” of the Discourse?

Does that mean that there are the “All” that the Father has given the Son to redeem…

—> But others, above & beyond the “All” that will come to Christ, as well?

To answer that question on the positive would be to deny the omniscience of God.

To answer that question in the positive would be to deny the radical depravity of the human heart that the Bible repeatedly and explicitly teaches from Genesis to Revelation.

All that the Father gives to Christ will come to Christ.

—> They are the elect of God.

—> They are those whose name was written in the Lamb’s Book of Life before the foundation of the world.

1 Peter 2:9 (ESV)

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Living for God’s Glory: An Introduction to Calvinism (Made Willing)

No one in history has ever done anything more willingly and more lovingly than those who receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. Think of Lydia (Acts 16:14–15) and the Philippian jailor (Acts 16:30–34); they were not saved against their wills.

On the other hand, God must work within the sinner to make him willing to come to Christ. John 6:44 says that unless the Father “draws” him, a sinner will not believe the gospel. The original word for draw implies a certain compelling force.