The Gospel...Is it a God ordained means for regeneration or eternal salvation ?

Dear Brother Pinyobaptist,
Maybe I do not understand what is meant by conversion. I believe the purpose of our preaching the gospel is for the conversion of the regenerated elect children of God.

this, I guess sounds then that I am holding to a requirement when I say I beleive all the elect will hear the gospel. But what I mean is that I believe that the Spirit does preach the gospel to all the elect, that they being regenerated children of God will have a drawing to the preached word, where they can be educated, where they can repent and be baptized.

This, though perhaps only my opinion dear Brother, goes all the way back to the ministry of John, he did preach and he did require evidence of the fruit of repentance, Christ did as well.

Now, to say that the gospel must be preached by man to man, I don't think is true. But to say that the regenerated will not have a desire for that gospel message or that they will not embrace it when it is preached in some form, I likewise do not think is true.

I do not believe this strains the teaching of scripture, that the elect, even the multitudes of infants, and those in past ages of history, have failed to know the truth by the immediate teaching of the Spirit of God.

To answer your question (hopefully), I believe the preaching of the Gospel of Christ by man is toward the end of converting the regenerated; toward educating the regenerated in a godly life, toward edification of the church, I believe all that is necessary for the final glorification of God through Christ is taught (preached) into the heart of the elect at the moment of regeneration.

These things are difficult for our discussion because we cannot see the internal evidence bearing witness with each person, we can only make a distinction when this internal evidence conincides with one form or the other of operating within the elect to work out the salvation that God is working in them.

Added to this is a tendencey of my own failure to be in circles of education called in older times concrete sequential/abstract. I mean then that I tend to be very particular, concrete, and at the same time, very abstract.

I cannot view any of the elect children of God standing before God in judgement and declaring I am saved because I chose to place my faith in Christ Jesus, I do not accept that the Bible teaches this, it inmho proposes an addition to the finished work of atonement, therefore, is not far from the co-mediator doctrine among Catholics concerning mary. (imho).

Further, I do not believe that any number of the elect will be in the same position without recognizing the one who stood as the lamb of God slain before the foundation of the world.

To make this work, I see God operating providentially to provide the preaching of the Gospel, Where I cannot see this is practically occurring, and most evidently seen among dying infants and those of infatile minds, I see God accomplishing this through the immediate operation of the Holy Spirit. In short, I reconcile the two, for even the gospel preacher is not effective in the conversion of the regenerated elect apart from the immediate operation of the Holy Spirit.

I hope this helps you to understand what I mean. I understand why my failure to communicate what I mean results in an appearance of some form of gospel regeneration. But, I do not see that, only that the gospel is preached or taught to all that are immediately taught of the Spirit, these, are seen imho to be drawn in time to the preaching of the word in order for temporal salvation, in order for personal and corporate edification.

Sorry, I just can't explain what I believe any more satisfactory than what I have, at least for the present time I cannot. I cannot believe that a man woman or child will live a life so completely in opposition of Christ that they would die in a religion so far from the truth that by their association they daily deny the Son of God.

If in the mind of the PB brethren that makes me a gospel regenerationist, I will not take offense nor count it to any wrong except my own inability to convey my meaning and understanding. On the other hand where it makes others to count me a heretic, I stand in the same attitude toward them, it is that I alone am unable to show either side what I believe.

I do not think conversion is unto eternal life as many evangelicals count it to mean. I believe conversion is to the gospel of the Son of God.

If I counted conversion to be unto eternal life, I would have to say there are very few anywhere that are in possession of eternal life, though many are in possession of a faith built around their own understanding (myself included) or that of traditional belief held among their family and their church historical traditions.

I have written enough for now.

May God Bless each of us in our walk and service to Him.

Bro. Dallas Eaton

 

So, if I may, are you saying that you believe that all of the elect will come to the knowledge of God and His Son Jesus Christ sometime before they die, and that knowledge will be a spiritual knowledge granted to them in their hearts and minds and not vocalized to them by a preacher?

If I may also ask, what type or level of knowledge will they have? Do you believe it will be a perfect understanding of the Lord, or do you believe that it will be the simple(yet not so simple) knowledge that Christ is God and he died for our sins?

Bro. James

 

Dear Brother James,
I can't remember the passages of scripture, but the Bible I believe teaches the peace of God and the peace with God.

I believe all the elect have the peace of God imparted to them at some point prior to death. I believe peace with God is imparted to them upon believing the gospel.

I may have these switched, but I think you can get the idea of what I am saying.

I do not know the degree to which the elect will have a knowledge of the gospel, in my above paragraph which I would call peace with God (being temporal and experiential in this life). But I believe all the elect will have the peace of God.

I will try to write more later.

Bro. Dallas

 

Dear Pinyobaptist,
I did not think you were being harsh, I just know in past discussions I have not been able to adequately relate my belief, maybe that means it has no foundation or maybe that means I just am not good enough at communicating that I do not know how to say what I mean clearly in this area.

I really like straightforward questions they are best.

My point is I don't understand why the Spirit would be thought to not be able to provide for the regenerated elect individual some sort of knowledge of his/her redeemer, even if it is or was very slack, I would think the indwelling of the Spirit would continually cause an ache of something lacking in the individual that would at the very least cause them to search more for the fill of that emptiness. But it may just be my opinion.

I have read a couple of testimonies of folks [a jew and a muslim] who were no doubt regenerated, their testimony related that each time they passed a Christian church, they longed to enter in and hear the teaching. This was by two individuals with no knowledge of one another. Each finally did experience conversion. But, it is that drawing toward the preaching and teaching of the Gospel I am speaking of, that has to also be a function of the indwelt Spirit, at least in my way of thinking it would be.

God Bless
Bro. Dallas