Featured General Revelation

It makes sense.

Besides the verses I gave above, John Wesley believed what you are positing, most of his theological descendants believe it, the Quakers believe it, most General Baptists believe it, many Anabaptists believe it.

 

No, they cannot; because it is the special revelation of Jesus Christ's work on the cross which is necessary for salvation, but the following of "general" revelation is, however, IMO a sufficient guarantor of exposure to the gospel and the opportunity to accept and repent.

I believe that there are a few....who have followed what "general" revelation there is, to the point that God HAS, in fact, sent "a preacher"...in other words, I do not believe that there are any people who are capable of belief or, alternatively, who would or might, in certain alternative circumstances repent and believe in Christ, who have been robbed of the opportunity to hear and accept and repent.

I think there simply is no such thing as someone who's eternal fate is based upon any happenstance of circumstances. I believe that God knows anyone who would or might repent and believe, and that their "general" revelation is sufficient to condemn...there simply ARE no persons, who, through virtue of circumstance are capable or likely to truly believe (given special revelation) who are simply without a witness.

Put succinctly....the "what about those who have never heard?" question, is answered by saying:
They don't exist.
Hope that helps and provides a certain possible response.

 

My answer would be no....but it would be with the caveat that anyone who satisfies the conditions you have set forth....will, in fact, have a "preacher" sent to them....

I don't think that is a possible scenario...do you see the difference between where I am coming from and you are coming from? We are both trying to fairly answer the: ("What about those who never heard"?) question, and we both demand the same basic result...That is, that no one is a victim of mere ill-luck and chance...but rather than say that there are alternative possibilities for those with lesser revelation...I believe anyone capable of salvation is GIVEN that revelation, and anyone WITHOUT that revelation is one who would not believe in any set of circumstances.

Take the Rahab example....she wasn't ULTIMATELY judged in lieu of the special revelation given to Israel, but WITH IT!! Her "general revelation" was a sufficient guarantor that she be provided the "special revelation" which she could respond to for salvific faith. She, in fact, became a Jewish proselyte and an ancestor of Christ himself.

 

Jn 3:21 makes it crystal clear that those that come to the light God has already wrought within them....

 

You've raised some excellent questions, and I'm hesitant to reject the possibilities out of hand. I don't want to limit God or tie his hands, so to speak.

There is another reason. Someone very close to me once gave his testimony he didn't really know when the Lord saved him. That produced some reaction from those who believe we ought to be able to go back to a day and time when we were saved. His testimony was that he was a religious man, but one day he realized that he now enjoyed studying God's word. It was no longer a chore. He began to love the preaching of the Word. He began to love the Lord more than he had ever done before. Yet he didn't know when this change occurred in him. I wondered about this testimony too, but this was one of the Godliest men I ever knew. Something happened to him and he was changed.

I believe God saves through means. I believe the gospel is the power of God to salvation. I believe God saves through preaching. I believe that Jesus is the way, truth and light and nobody comes to God except through Him. Yet, I will leave the door open for God to act unilaterallly as he wills and on whom he will.

 

Well, yea, Christ did tell us that the Spirit blows where He wills; doesn't sound as if He limited God or tied His hands now did He? Don't you believe Christ?

Per post #7:

"What do you mean by 'SAVED'? (I assume you gom it up, as do the many, and make it to be synonymous with the 'birth from above')"

 

General revelation means that ALL persons will NOT have an excuse, as His creation shows off that God exists, but ONLY special revelation of the Bible and especially jesus enables a sinner to be saved by the grace of God!

For sinners can and do see God as alive, as Muslims/Buddhists/Hindus all do, but the ONLY way God saves out sinners is by special revelation, as JUST the elect receive that from the Lord!

 

that God does not exist, that they are not sinners etc!

 

I heard Adrian Rodgers once say that every man has enough light "general revelation" to condemn them but not enough to save them.

 

All men suppress truth is what scripture declares.Your speculation does not change rom1. Men are fully responsible for their sin...not God.
You cannot seem to post on this without blaming God.That is sinful.

 

And Adrian was wrong.

 

You didn't address this to me, but maybe you won't mind my answering:

God could do this, has done it, and will continue to do it. His word affirms it.

 

First, God did what? Second, give me examples of how he had done it, will continue to do it, and how He affirms that? Because I see that there is no other name other than Jesus whereby we must be saved. I don't see that as general revelation.